Tokyo stocks open flat on virus concerns

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks opened flat on Wednesday as a higher yen weighed on the market and reports said the Japanese government will expand a virus state of emergency.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index inched down 0.03 percent or 8.22 points to 28,156.12 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.21 percent or 3.85 points to 1,854.09.

"Even though gains on Wall Street are providing some support, Japanese shares are pressured by a higher yen," said Yoshihiro Ito, senior strategist at Okasan Online Securities.

Worries over the expected expansion of the regions under emergency measures, currently only in place in the greater Tokyo area, are also cooling the market, he added.

The dollar fetched 103.75 yen in early Asian trade, against 103.76 yen in New York and 104.27 yen in Tokyo late Tuesday.

Toyota dropped for a second day, trading down 0.67 percent at 7,839 yen as difficulties in chip procurement forces automakers including the Japanese giant to cut output in North America.

Honda however was up 1.13 percent at 2,920.5 yen after dipping 1.55 percent in the previous session, while Nissan was down 1.58 percent at 537.4 yen.

Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest was up 2.66 percent at 8,480 yen and chip-making equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron rallied 3.26 percent to 42,130 yen.

Pharmaceuticals were lower on profit-taking, with Takeda trading down 1.68 percent at 3,751 yen and Chugai down 2.41 percent at 5,721 yen.

On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.2 percent at 31,068.69.