(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market was trading lower for the fourth straight session on Friday following another sell-off overnight on Wall Street and on a stronger yen.

At 7.53 P.M. ET, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index was losing 199.07 points, or 2.58%, to 7,503.97 and the broader Topix Index of all First Section Issues was down 24.82 points to 757.46.

U.S. stocks plunged on Thursday following a late day sell-off as dismal economic data heightened fears of a prolonged recession. News that lawmakers postponed a vote on a plan to bailout the auto industry also weighed on investor sentiment. The major averages all ended the session at multi-year closing lows, with the S&P 500 index plunging to an eleven-and-a-half year low and the Dow Jones industrial average closing at a more than five-and-a-half year low .

The Japanese stock market closed sharply lower on Wednesday, extending its losses for the third consecutive trading session. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed down 570.2 points, or 6.9%, at 7,703.0 and the Topix index dropped 45.2 points, or 5.5%, to 782.3.

The price of oil closed below $50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Thursday, amidst intensifying fears that the world may be on the verge of slowdown not seen since the Great Depression. Crude for December closed down $4.00 to settle at $49.62 a barrel, the lowest settlement in more than three years.

On the economic front, the Bank of Japan concludes its two-day monetary policy meeting on Friday. It marks the bank’s first meeting since October 31, when the board of governors trimmed the overnight call rate by 20 basis points to 0.30% after keeping rates on hold for the previous 22 meetings. Analysts are expecting the bank to keep rates on hold this time.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar was trading in the upper 93 yen-range on Friday following the overnight sharp decline on Wall Street and the release of weaker-than-expected U.S. employment and manufacturing data. In early trades, the dollar was quoted in a range of 93.94-94.00 yen, down 1.29 yen from Thursday’s close of 95.23-95.26 yen in Tokyo.

In the banking space, Mitsubishi UFJ slumped 4.58%, Mizuho Financial slid 4.02%, Sumitomo Mitsui fell 3.77% and Resona Holdings lost 1.45%. Leasing and financial services company Orix Corp. said Thursday that it will issue 150 billion yen worth of convertible bonds in order to pay down short-term debt and raise funds for investments. The company’s stock was down 12.12%.

Among export-oriented stocks, Sony dipped 2.90%, Canon shed 4.60% and Nikon gave away 5.18%. Automaker Mazda lost 4.29%, Toyota declined 3.06%, Nissan shed 6.42% and Honda dipped 4.93%. In the tech space, Advantest shed 4.08%, Fanuc declined 1.40% and Kyocera lost 3.54%.

In the oil sector, Inpex Holdings slid 6.13%, Showa Shell dipped 3.28% and Nippon Oil lost 6.06%. Trading house Marubeni slumped 11.11%, Itochu shed 5.15% and Sojitz gave away 7.09%.

Phone company NTT Corp. said on Thursday that it intends a 100-for-1 share split in January 2009 to eliminate fractional shares before the introduction of electronic stock certificates next year. The company noted that stock exchanges in Japan will halt trading in its shares from December 25 to 30. Shares of the company were down 5.56%.

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Posted in Categories: Japan, Releases, Stocks, USA.

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