The Tokyo stock exchange continued its losing streak on Monday. The chip companies, in particular, were lowered after the price losses in the US chip sector. Oil producers have also been hit by a drop in oil prices following the oil cartel OPEC and allies agreed to increase production.
The advance of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in the run-up to the Olympic Games in Tokyo, which start on Friday, also caused investor reluctance.
The main index in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225, was down 1.3 percent at 27,652.74 points. It was the fourth loss in a row. Japanese chip companies Taiyo Yuden, Sumco, Tokyo Electron and Advantest, were bottom with losses of up to 3.6 percent. Oil producer Inpex fell 1.5 percent, and Japan Petroleum Exploration lost 2.6 percent. OPEC and allies such as Russia and Kazakhstan agreed on Sunday to increase oil production from August, putting pressure on oil prices.
Toyota lost more than 1 percent. According to the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri, the carmaker, one of the major sponsors of the Olympics, will not broadcast TV commercials related to the Games because of the growing discontent in the country over the continuation of the event. The company’s CEO, Akio Toyoda, is also not expected to attend the opening ceremony.
Elsewhere in the Asian region, the main equity markets also took a step back. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 1.8 percent in the meantime, and the indicator in Shanghai lost 0.5 percent. Chinese oil company CNOOC fell 1.9 percent in Hong Kong. The All Ordinaries in Sydney lost 0.7 percent. Australian oil group Santos lost more than 2 percent.