Japan stocks fall as investors brace for earnings

By Stanley White
TOKYO, April 20 (Reuters) - Japanese shares pulled back on
Monday from a near six-week high hit in the previous session, as
caution set in before corporate earnings results that are likely
to reveal the damage wrought by the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The Nikkei index .N225 fell 1.02% to 19,694.28 by 0153
GMT, led by declines in the consumer discretionary and
healthcare sectors.
Companies linked to consumer spending took a hit as Japanese
officials encourage more people to stay at home to limit the
spread of the novel coronavirus.
The healthcare sector initially got a boost as companies
raced to test medicines to deal with the pandemic, before giving
up some of these gains as nervous investors started to lock in
profits.
Chugai Pharmaceutical Co 4519.T and electronics maker
Omron Corp 6645.T will release their earnings on Thursday,
while semiconductor testing equipment maker Advantest Corp
6857.T and industrial robot maker Fanuc Corp 6954.T will
post their results on Friday.
Investors will closely examine the results and guidance on
future earnings to gauge the health of corporate Japan.
Companies across the globe are struggling with sudden
collapse in demand and manufacturing disruptions due to the
pandemic.
On the Nikkei index, there were 38 advancers against 179
decliners.
The biggest percentage losers in the index were audio
equipment maker Yamaha Corp 7951.T , down 3.66%, followed by
drug maker Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd 4568.T , losing 3.36%, and
telecom infrastructure provider Comsys Holdings Corp 1721.T ,
down by 3.07%.
The largest percentage gainers in the index were Taiheiyo
Cement Corp 5233.T , up 2.98%, followed by industrial machinery
maker IHI Corp 7013.T , gaining 2.95%, and start-up investors
and mobile phone operator SoftBank Group Corp 9984.T , up by
2.51%.
The broader Topix index .TOPX fell 0.43% to 1,436.24.
The volume of shares traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's
main board .TOPX was 0.39 billion, compared to the average of
2.02 billion in the past 30 days.