Tokyo shares open lower but seen buoyant

TOKYO–Tokyo stocks opened slightly lower Friday despite another record performance on Wall Street but analysts said the market was still on an overall upward trajectory, supported by the weak yen.

The Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 70.08 points, or 0.52 percent, to 13,479.08 in the first minutes of trading.

Market players expect the dollar to hit the 100-yen level following the Bank of Japan’s sweeping monetary easing last week. The dollar last topped 100 yen in April 2009.

“Japan shares should remain well supported by the yen’s continuing fall, although resistance around the 100-yen mark for the dollar may prevent a breach of the level today,” said SMBC Nikko Securities general manager of equities Hiroichi Nishi.

The headline Nikkei should hover between 13,400 and 13,600, he told Dow Jones Newswires.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 62.90 (0.42 percent) to 14,865.14, boosted by better-than-expected numbers on jobless claims. The broad-based S&P 500 rose 5.64 (0.36 percent) to 1,593.37.

The US currency bought 99.61 yen, off slightly from 99.73 yen in New York Thursday.

The euro was at $1.3107 and 130.70 yen, compared with $1.3096 and 130.68 yen in New York.

A lower yen is a boost for Japanese exporters as it makes their products more competitive abroad and increases their income when repatriated.