Tokyo (awp / afp) – The Tokyo Stock Exchange was again in the red on Tuesday morning, concerned like all the world markets by the surge in oil prices and the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine.
The flagship Nikkei index lost 0.44% to 25,111.61 around 00:45 GMT, even briefly falling back shortly after opening below 25,000 points for the first time since November 2020.
The broader Topix index dropped 0.62% to 1,782.95 points.
“The Japanese market should remain on a downward trend, world markets shaken” by the surge in prices of black gold not encouraging risk taking, commented Okasan Online Securities in a note.
The possibility in particular of a Western embargo on Russian oil, discussed by Washington and the European Union as a measure of response to the Russian invasion in Ukraine, had sealed Wall Street on Monday.
The White House has said President Joe Biden has “not made a decision at this stage” on a possible embargo on Russian gas and oil, while Germany opposes any gas embargo, including she is very dependent.
Russia for its part warned Monday against “catastrophic consequences” for the world market of the establishment of an embargo on its oil.
The price of a barrel of American WTI rose 1.32% to 120.98 dollars around 00:50 GMT.
Metal prices were also soaring, with aluminum, nickel, copper and palladium hitting historic highs on Monday.
On the side of values
FAST RETAILING REMAINS IN RUSSIA: The clothing giant Fast Retailing (-2% to 59,490 yen) said on Monday that it did not plan “for the moment” to suspend its operations in Russia, where the group has 49 Uniqlo stores.
“Dressing is a necessity of life. Russians have the same right to live as we do,” said CEO-founder Tadashi Yanai in an interview with the Nikkei business daily, saying that “there should never be any war” and that “every country should oppose it”.
On the currency side
The euro rose against the yen, at the rate of one euro for 125.34 yen around 12:50 a.m. GMT against 125.17 yen on Monday at 9:00 p.m. GMT.
The European currency was worth 1.0854 dollars, like the day before.
The greenback also strengthened against the yen, at the rate of one dollar for 115.46 yen against 115.32 yen on Monday.
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