TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market on Thursday ended the two-day winning streak in which it had picked up almost 110 points or 0.3 percent. The Nikkei 225 now rests just above the 34,735-point plateau and it may take further damage on Friday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets is broadly negative after U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff announcement. The European and U.S. markets were sharply lower and the Asian bourses are expected to open in similar fashion.
The Nikkei finished sharply lower on Thursday following losses from the financial shares, technology stocks and automobile producers.
For the day, the index plummeted 989.94 points or 2.77 percent to finish at 34,735.93 after trading between 34,102.00 and 35,044.73.
Among the actives, Nissan Motor tanked 3.68 percent, while Mazda Motor plunged 7.17 percent, Toyota Motor surrendered 5.18 percent, Honda Motor retreated 2.31 percent, Softbank Group stumbled 3.92 percent, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial plummeted 7.16 percent, Mizuho Financial cratered 7.95 percent, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial crashed 7.69 percent, Mitsubishi Electric declined 3.36 percent, Sony Group tumbled 4.82 percent, Panasonic Holdings slumped 7.43 percent and Hitachi dropped 6.46 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is brutal as the major averages opened sharply lower on Thursday and remained deep in the red throughout the day, ending at session lows.
The Dow plummeted 1,679.39 points or 3.98 percent to finish at 40,545.93, while the NASDAQ crashed 1,050.44 points or 5.97 percent to close at 1,6550.61 and the S&P 500 tumbled 274.45 points or 4.84 percent to end at 5,396.52.
The nosedive on Wall Street came after Trump delivered a highly anticipated speech on Wednesday outlining his plan to impose sweeping tariffs on U.S. trade partners.
Canada and the European Union are also preparing countermeasures, leading to concerns about a trade war that could fuel inflation and damage the global economy.
Adding to the negative sentiment, the Institute for Supply Management said U.S. service sector growth slowed by more than anticipated in March.
Crude oil prices pulled back sharply on Thursday after the U.S. implemented its tariffs, while additional selling pressure came after OPEC said it would speed up previously announced increases in output. Crude for May delivery plummeted $4.76 or 6.6 percent to $66.95 a barrel.
Closer to home, Japan will release February figures for household spending later this morning. Spending is expected to rise 0.5 percent on month and slip 0.9 percent on year after falling 4.5 percent on month and adding 0.8 percent on year in January.
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