Nikkei slips from multi-decade highs on vaccine supply concerns

TOKYO, Dec 4 (Reuters) - Japan's benchmark Nikkei share
average closed lower on Friday, retreating from a near
29-1/2-year high as risk sentiment soured after U.S. drugmaker
Pfizer Inc said it had slashed the target for the rollout of its
coronavirus vaccine.
The Nikkei share average .N225 fell 0.22% to 26,751.24,
but posted its fifth consecutive weekly gain. In the previous
session, the index settled near its highest since April 1991.
The broader Topix .TOPX ended nearly flat at 1,775.94.
The market tracked the U.S. S&P 500 index, which fell from
all-time highs on Thursday, after Pfizer PFE.N flagged
challenges in supply chain for the raw materials used in its
vaccine. .N "Expectations were high for the vaccine ... But market
losses are limited because the market still has hopes that
governments in countries such as Japan, U.S and Europe will
deliver large-scale additional stimulus measures," said Hideyuki
Ishiguro, senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.
Among individual decliners, Tokyo Electron 8035.T dropped
3.12% on profit-taking after the recent outperformance of tech
stocks.
Export-oriented stocks JPY=EBS were hurt by a stronger yen
against the dollar. Fanuc 6954.T fell 0.82%, while Sony Corp
6758.T lost more than 0.2% before closing nearly flat.
Auto-related shares advanced after local media reported that
Japan may ban sales of new gasoline-engine cars by the
mid-2030s, and that the government would hold talks next week to
establish a carbon offset market for the industry. These moves come after Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's
pledge for Japan to slash carbon emissions to zero on a net
basis by 2050.
Denso Corp 6902.T jumped more than 7.7%, while Nissan
Motor 7201.T and Toyota Motor Corp 7203.T added 2.6% and
0.24%, respectively.
Battery-related shares followed suit, with Furukawa Battery
6937.T jumping 14.19% and FDK Corp 6955.T adding 4.37%.
Suga is expected to hold a news conference later in the day
to provide an update on the country's pandemic response, his
first since coronavirus case numbers surged in November.