Japanese shares end lower as virus worries cloud sentiment

TOKYO: Japanese shares reversed course to end lower on Thursday, as renewed concerns about rising cases of the novel coronavirus in Japan outweighed optimism around US Federal Reserve's decision and upbeat earnings reports.

The Nikkei 225 index ended down 0.26pc at 22,339.23, while the broader Topix lost 0.62pc to 1,539.47.

All but four of the 33 sector sub-indexes on the Tokyo exchange dropped, with airlines, electric and gas and land transport leading the declines.

Sentiment turned sour after the Nikkei daily reported Tokyo plans to urge shorter operating hours for restaurants and karaoke parlours next month, a day after daily new cases crossed the 1,000-mark for the first time in Japan.

Markets had risen in early trade, tracking a Wall Street rally after the US Federal Reserve repeated a pledge to use its "full range of tools" to support the economy and kept the interest rates near zero.

Among individual shares and sectors, ANA Holdings shed 2.81pc after the airline reported a quarterly operating loss of 159 billion yen ($1.51 billion) as the pandemic hit travel.

Kao Corporation slipped 5.16pc as the toiletry goods maker cut its profit forecast for the year through March.

Department stores Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings slumped 10.18pc to hit a record low after the firm posted a quarterly loss and forecast a 60 billion yen net loss for the current fiscal year.

Among gainers, M3 rose 6.05pc to a record high following a 26.4pc jump in its operating profit for the April-June quarter.

Nomura Holdings added 4.5pc as it reported its second-best quarterly profit since 2002.

Nikkei heavyweight SoftBank Group added 2.36pc after the tech conglomerate said it had set up a testing centre to diagnose COVID-19 using saliva.