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Tokyo (AFP) – The Tokyo Stock Exchange closed Friday in equilibrium, but its flagship Nikkei index tumbled 9.36% for the whole of 2022, amid high inflation and aggressive monetary tightening abroad. .
The Nikkei ended stable at 26,094.50 points on Friday, following rising slightly in session thanks to a rebound on Wall Street the day before. The broader Topix index fell 0.19% to 1,891.71 points.
On the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, the Hang Seng index was up 0.38% around 06:40 GMT, heading for a fall of some 15% over the whole of 2022.
The Tokyo Nikkei index has completed its worst year since 2018, following climbing sharply in 2019, 2020 and to a lesser extent in 2021.
Even if the Bank of Japan (BoJ) kept its ultra-accommodative course in 2022 and the fall of the yen supported Japanese export stocks, the Tokyo Stock Exchange suffered a lot this year from the drastic monetary tightening of the Fed in the United States. States and recession fears around the world.
Other powerful headwinds blew: the global energy crisis and the geopolitical risks linked to the war in Ukraine, or even China’s “zero Covid” strategy, which is exhausting for the country’s economy as well as for supply chains. of the entire planet.
Uncertainties regarding the evolution of the Tokyo market in 2023 are very high.
The post-pandemic recovery is expected to continue in Japan, supported by a new fiscal stimulus package from the government. But “the main theme of the first half will be the economic slowdown (global, editor’s note) once morest the backdrop of rate hikes” by central banks in their fight once morest inflation, Chihiro Ota, an expert at SMBC Nikko Securities, predicted on Friday.
The recent explosion of Covid-19 cases in China is another cause for concern.
On the side of values
TECH: Some Japanese technology stocks advanced on Friday thanks to the Nasdaq’s overnight rebound. Electronic equipment manufacturers TDK (+0.93% to 4,335 yen) and Omron (+1.74% to 6,405 yen) were particularly well oriented.
On the side of currencies and oil
The yen appreciated once morest the dollar, which was worth 132.63 yen around 06:30 GMT once morest 133.03 yen Thursday at 21:00 GMT.
The Japanese currency also rose once morest the euro, which traded at 141.14 yen once morest 141.82 yen the day before.
The European currency also fell once morest the greenback, to 1.0640 dollars for one euro once morest 1.0661 dollars Thursday at 9:00 p.m. GMT.
The oil market was in the green: the barrel of American WTI advanced by 0.56% to 78.84 dollars around 06:40 GMT, and the barrel of Brent from the North Sea took 0.49% to 83.87 dollars.
© 2022 AFP