Tokyo: Shares close lower as investors take profits

[TOKYO] Tokyo stocks snapped a three-day winning streak on Friday as investors locked in profits while concerns over the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak eased.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.19 per cent, or 45.61 points, to 23,827.98. Over the week, it rallied 2.68 per cent.

The broader Topix index lost 0.28 per cent, or 4.84 points, to 1,732.14, chalking up a weekly gain of 2.83 per cent.

As for Friday's drop, Makoto Sengoku, market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Institute, said it was "a reaction to the recent rises".

"Today's drop is not so big considering the Nikkei rose nearly 600 points yesterday alone," he noted, arguing that market sentiment was not bad.

Okasan Online Securities said in a note that "the market is now in a phase to roll back bearish positions linked to the new virus".

In the afternoon, traders were sitting on their hands ahead of the weekend and before the release later in the day of key US jobs data, said Okasan Online's chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito.

REUTERS