Nikkei Average Stalls after Nearing 50,000

Tokyo, Oct. 21 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average lost steam after nearing uncharted territory above 50,000 on Tuesday. The Nikkei average notched a record intraday high of 49,945.95 at 11:22 a.m. ahead of the election of Sanae Takaichi as Japan’s new prime minister in the early afternoon. However, the index briefly slipped into negative territory later, as buying incentives were exhausted after Takaichi’s election, market sources said. The Nikkei closed at 49,316.06, up 130.56 points, or 0.26 pct, from Monday, still setting a new record closing high. The broader TOPIX index edged up 1.05 points, or 0.03 pct, to 3,249.50. The market also appeared to be weighed down by a sense of overheating due to its recent rapid climb. “Short-term traders moved to lock in profits,” an official at an online securities firm said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]