Tokyo Stocks Rise Modestly on Dividend Hunting

Jiji Press

17:00 JST, March 27, 2023

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Tokyo stocks rose moderately on Monday, mainly aided by buying to secure rights to dividends ahead of the end of fiscal 2022 in Japan.

The Nikkei average of 225 selected issues listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime section rose 91.62 points, or 0.33%, to finish at 27,476.87 after falling 34.36 points Friday.

The broader TOPIX index ended up 6.52 points, or 0.33%, at 1,961.84, following a 2.00-point drop the previous trading day.

The Tokyo market opened higher on Wall Street’s gains on Friday.

Stocks going ex-dividend on Thursday attracted purchases, while the market’s topside was capped by continued worries about the global banking turmoil, market sources said.

“Risk-averse selling [due to worries about the health of the financial system] has come to a halt, but a risk-on mood has yet to return,” Chihiro Ota, general manager for investment research and investor services at SMBC Nikko Securities Inc., said.

Meanwhile, Masahiro Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Co., said, “Due to a dearth of fresh market-moving news, active transactions were held in check today.”

On the Prime section, gainers overwhelmed decliners 1,239 to 515 while 82 issues were flat. Volume dropped to 966 million shares from Friday’s 1,019 million shares.