BCN-06 Tokyo stocks open lower on worries over trade, Iran

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BCN-06

JAPAN-STOCKS-MARKETS-OPEN

Tokyo stocks open lower on worries over trade, Iran

TOKYO, June 24, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Tokyo stocks opened lower on Monday,
weighed down by the US-China trade row ahead of this week’s G20 summit and
concerns over an escalation in US-Iran tensions.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was down 0.27 percent or 57.89 points at
21,200.75 in early trade, while the broader Topix index dropped 0.22 percent
or 3.45 points to 1,542.45.

“The G20 summit this weekend in Osaka is attracting a lot of attention,
with particular interest in the US-China summit talks” on the sidelines of
the gathering, Hirokazu Kabeya, chief global strategist at Daiwa Securities,
said in a commentary.

Investors were keenly watching if the trade talks that were suspended in
May will resume with the talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese
leader Xi Jinping, he said.

Worries over “the intensifying Middle East situation and a higher yen (are
expected to) weigh on the market,” added Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at
Okasan Online Securities.

Trump on Saturday pledged to hit Iran with “major” new sanctions as Tehran
warned Washington that any attack would see its interests across the Middle
East go up in flames.

The war of words heated up after Trump had pulled back from military
action against Iran in response to its downing of a US reconnaissance drone.

Meanwhile, a Yemeni rebel attack on a civilian airport in southern Saudi
Arabia killed a Syrian national and wounded seven civilians Sunday, a Riyadh-
led coalition said, the latest in a series of strikes on the site.

The coalition did not provide details on how the airport was attacked, but
Iran-aligned Huthi rebels have repeatedly struck the civilian facility this
month with drones and missiles.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly accused Iran of supplying sophisticated
weapons to the rebels.

Tehran denies the charge.

The dollar fetched 107.38 yen in early Asian trade, down from 107.60 yen
in New York on Friday.

In Tokyo, chip-related shares were among the losers, with chip-making
equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron trading down 2.02 percent at 14,757 yen
and chip-testing equipment maker Advantest down 0.18 percent at 2,724 yen.

Electronic parts maker Rohm was down 0.71 percent at 6,950 yen while
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries was down 0.37 percent at 4,762 yen.

On Wall Street, the Dow ended down 0.1 percent to 26,719.13.

BSS/AFP/HR/0950