TOKYO – Tokyo stocks opened up 0.43 percent on Tuesday after plunging the previous day on weak US data and European debt woes.
The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange, which slumped 1.71 percent to a six-month low on Monday, opened up 35.39 points at 8,331.02.
The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was up 4.06 points or 0.58 percent to 699.57 after dropping 1.89 percent to the lowest level since December 1983 the previous day.
The “mostly flat performance in New York, and a pause in the yen’s strength are likely to invite some buying” on Tuesday, Rakuten Securities senior market analyst Masayuki Doshida said.
But jitters over the eurozone debt situation and concerns over the state of the global economy are likely to weigh on sentiment, he told Dow Jones Newswires, signalling that any gains may be limited.
Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said finance ministers of the Group of Seven and other economic powers would talk by phone on Tuesday on the eurozone crisis and the weak European banks.
The euro bought $1.2534 and 98.18 yen in early Asian trade, up from $1.2494 and 97.89 yen in New York late Monday. The dollar was flat, buying 78.35 yen.
US stocks closed mixed Monday after a day of bumpy trade, as eurozone turmoil kept a shadow over the markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished the day down 17.11 points (0.14 percent) at 12,101.46.