Japan shares touch 2-week low on oil slump, caution before earnings

By Stanley White
TOKYO, April 22 (Reuters) - Japanese shares fell to two-week
lows on Wednesday, as investors unwound bets in riskier assets
following the historic collapse in crude oil prices, while
caution ahead of corporate results later this week also weighed
on sentiment.
The Nikkei index .N225 ended down 0.74% at 19,137.95, with
consumer discretionary and information technology sectors
leading declines.
Oil prices slumped again, with Brent falling to the lowest
since 1999, as the market struggled with a massive crude glut
amid a collapse in demand caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
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The extent of the price disruption has pushed other
financial markets lower, prompting investors to reverse long
position in equities.
Denting sentiment further, investors were reluctant to hold
big positions in Japanese shares before corporate results
announcements later this week, which are likely to reveal the
extent of economic damage caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
"The markets have largely priced in bad earnings for the
first quarter, but companies cannot reasonably forecast revenue
for the second quarter and beyond," said Yutaka Masushima,
market analyst at Monex Securities in Tokyo.
"Revenue for some companies in retail and restaurants have
fallen to zero. Other sectors like healthcare and IT can still
do well, but overall there are a lot of risks."
On the Nikkei index, there were 55 advancers against 165
decliners.
The biggest percentage losers in the index were electronic
components maker Alps Alpine Co Ltd 6770.T , down 5.59%,
followed by oil refiner Idemitsu Kosan Co Ltd 5019.T , losing
5.29%, and industrial equipment maker IHI Corp 7013.T , down by
5.24%.
The largest percentage gainers in the index were Shinsei
Bank Ltd 8303.T , up 3.59%, followed by semiconductor testing
equipment makers Advantest Corp 6857.T , gaining 3.55%, and
Screen Holdings Co Ltd 7735.T , up by 3.38%.
Games maker Nintendo 7974.T rose 2.06% after activist
investor ValueAct Capital Partners LP said it had built a stake
of over $1.1 billion in the company in a bet that the
development of new entertainment products will fuel growth.
Meanwhile, the broader TOPIX index .TOPX fell 0.63% to
1,406.90.
The volume of shares traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's
main board .TOPX was 1.25 billion, compared to the average of
1.96 billion in the past 30 days.