Tokyo markets lower on Abe resignation

Tokyo’s markets were lower after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced that he will resign. The news sent the Nikkei 225 down 0.5 percent to 15,797.60. The Topix index dropped 0.27 percent to 1,528.27 while the Mothers market was 1.19 percent lower to 648.46. Banks were lower, but trading companies and the oil sector saw gains on higher commodities prices overnight.

Asia-Pacific equities markets were mixed Wednesday. Gainers included the Taiex index in Taiwan, which added 0.17 percent to 9,018.12. The Straits Times index gained 0.33 percent to 3,506.09 in Singapore, while the Shanghai Composite was 1.15 percent higher to 5,172.63 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 1.49 percent to 24,310.14. Australia’s markets declined with the Sydney Ordinaries down 0.2 percent to 6,236 and the S&P/ASX200 falling 0.24 percent to 6,220.3. The Sensex was also 0.24 percent lower to 15,505.36 in India, while South Korea’s Kospi index dropped 1.83 percent to 1,813.52.

European markets saw gains. The FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.22 percent to 1,510.28. Madrid’s IBEX was 0.11 percent higher to 13,980.4, while the Dax gained 0.2 percent to 7,472.99 and the CAC-40 was up 0.53 percent to 5,508.01. Gainers included construction and media, healthcare, property developers, and foods groups. Banks and utilities were mixed, while carmakers, the semiconductors sector, and airlines were lower.

London’s markets were higher as well, with the FTSE adding 0.41 percent to 6,306.2 and the FTSE 250 gaining 0.07 percent to 11,219.7. The chemicals sector saw gains, as did engineers and builders, retailers, and the tobacco sector. Insurers, media, brewers, and some financial services groups declined.

Wall Street was higher in early afternoon trade even though the dollar remained weak and oil prices hovered in record high territory. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.03 percent higher to 13,311.97, while the Nasdaq Composite had added 0.26 percent to 2,604.31 and the S&P 500 was 0.12 percent higher to 1,473.28. Many technology stocks were higher.

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