Nikkei falls on record slump in household spending; SoftBank Group jumps

TOKYO, July 7 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks ended lower on
Tuesday after domestic household spending dropped at the fastest
pace on record in May due to the coronavirus lockdown, although
heavyweight SoftBank Group's 9984.T sharp gains helped stem
the benchmark's losses.
The Nikkei average .N225 fell 0.44% to 22,614.69, snapping
a three-session winning streak after marking its highest close
since early June on Monday.
Japan's household spending slumped 16.2% in May, data
showed, with the pandemic driving large cuts in spending on
hotels, transportation and eating out. Nikkei's losses on Tuesday came despite sharp overnight
gains on Wall Street, with Nasdaq hitting a record high as data
showed U.S. services industry activity rebounded sharply in
June, while hopes for a revival in China's economy also boosted
sentiment. "Some factors behind China's recent rally were that China
quickly contained the virus and headed towards economic
recovery," said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at Monex
Securities in Tokyo.
"The focus is on whether Japan's upcoming data will also
show a stronger tendency toward recovery," he said, adding that
the Cabinet Office's Economy Watchers Survey, due to be released
on Wednesday, will be one of the indicators of where Japan is
headed.
Bucking overall weakness, SoftBank climbed 4.6% after the
company's massive buybacks, reaching levels last seen during the
dot-com bubble in early 2000.
The broader Topix .TOPX fell 0.34% to 1,571.71.
Nearly two-thirds of the 33 sector sub-indexes on the Tokyo
Stock Exchange traded in the red, with land transport .IRAIL.T
and drugmakers .IPHAM.T leading the losses.
Department store operator Takashimaya Co Ltd 8233.T
slipped 2.64% after it reported a net loss of 20.53 billion yen
in the March-May quarter, with sales nearly halving from the
previous year.