Market Commentary - Foreign Markets
The Japanese yen and China's yuan both inched higher after U.S. President Donald Trump said the countries cannot keep reducing value of their currencies.
Japanese markets fell sharply as Trump reaffirmed plans to raise tariffs on Chinese, Mexican and Canadian imports, and data showed the unemployment rate in the country edged up to 2.5 percent in January from 2.4 percent in December.
The Nikkei average tumbled 1.20 percent to 37.331.18 while the broader Topix index closed down 0.71 percent at 2,710.18.
Automakers led losses, with Toyota Motor, Honda and Nissan falling between 1.5 percent and 2.4 percent.
Capital investment of Japanese companies declined unexpectedly in the fourth quarter and the jobless rate remained unchanged in January, official data revealed Tuesday.
Investment in plant and machinery dropped 0.2 percent, in contrast to the sharp 8.1 percent increase in the third quarter, the Ministry of Finance reported.
Another data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed that the jobless rate remained unchanged at 2.5 percent in January.
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