TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market has tracked lower in back-to-back sessions, stumbling more than 630 points or 1.7 percent along the way. The Nikkei 225 now rests just above the 38,140-point plateau although it may find support on Thursday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is fairly upbeat, with bargain hunting expected among especially the technology stocks. The European markets were up and the U.S. bourses were mixed and the Asian markets figure to split the difference.
The Nikkei finished modestly lower on Wednesday following weakness from the financials, gains from the automobile producers and a mixed performance from the technology stocks.
For the day, the index slumped 95.42 points or 0.25 percent to finish at 38,142.37 after trading between 37,742.76 and 38,175.24.
Among the actives, Nissan Motor accelerated 1.92 percent, while Mazda Motor shed 0.54 percent, Toyota Motor added 0.53 percent, Honda Motor climbed 1.01 percent, Softbank Group tanked 2.81 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial stumbled 2.07 percent, Mizuho Financial surrendered 2.41 percent, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial skidded 1.11 percent, Mitsubishi Electric tumbled 1.93 percent, Sony Group perked 0.21 percent, Panasonic Holdings rallied 2.29 percent and Hitachi was down 0.26 percent.
The lead from Wall Street offers little clarity as the major averages hugged the line on Wednesday, finishing mixed and roughly flat as investors waited until after close for results from NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA).
The Dow stumbled 188.04 points or 0.43 percent to finish at 43,433.12, while the NASDAQ added 48.88 points or 0.26 percent to close at 19,075.26 and the S&P 500 perked 0.81 points or 0.01 percent to end at 5,956.06.
Wall Street saw some early bargain hunting following recent weakness in the markets, but mostly investors were waiting on the NVIDIA results.
After the bell, NVIDIA unveiled Q4 earnings that increased from last year, beat estimates slightly and provided positive guidance. That fueled choppy but not negative trade after hours.
In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing a substantial pullback by new home sales in the U.S. in January.
Crude oil prices drifted lower on Wednesday amid concerns about the outlook for demand as the Trump administration's tariff policies are expected to slow global economic growth. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for April settled lower by $0.31 at $68.62 a barrel.
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