TOKYO: Japanese shares ended nearly flat on Tuesday, as strong earnings from camera and copy machine maker Canon helped counter weakness in travel and real estate stocks following a lower finish on Wall Street. After dropping as much as 1.1% in early trade, the Nikkei share average was nearly flat at 23,485.80 while the broader Topix lost 0.09% to 1,617.53.
The market got support from upbeat earnings reports, with Canon jumping over 8% after raising its annual earnings outlook and legal portal service operator Bengo4.com reversing course to rise 7.5% on upbeat quarterly results. Declining the most, the airline index dropped 3.7% as investors focused on the kind of support airlines would get to survive the Covid-19 pandemic.
Japan Airline lost 4.27% as the Nikkei business daily reported it was likely to post a record net loss of about 230 billion yen ($2.20 billion) for the fiscal year ending March 2021. It is also reportedly seeking 300 billion yen in funding. Smaller peer Star Flyer ended 0.9% lower, having lost as much as 7.0% after a report that it may sell new shares to a fund. Railway operators also struggled, with West Japan Railway and Central Japan Railway falling around 3% each. Real estate companies Mitsubishi Fudosan and Sumitomo Realty fell 2.4% and 1.75%, respectively.
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