Tokyo shares outlook - Lower on Wall Street pullback

Tokyo shares outlook - Lower on Wall Street pullback

	Published : Tue, 31 Jul 2007 23:56 By : Agencies Print this Story

TOKYO (Thomson Financial) - Japanese shares are likely to open lower Wednesday after US stocks resumed their decline Tuesday as worries about subprime loans again dampened investor sentiment.

US stocks gave up Monday's gains and the Dow Jones industrials lost nearly 150 points at the close after the American Home Mortgage Investment Corp said it hasn't been able to tap into its credit lines and has hired advisers to consider its options, including the sale of its assets.

Yosuke Shimizu, head of investment information at Monex Securities, said investors in Japanese stocks will also continue to focus on the announcement of corporate quarterly results.

'It seems that investors do not appreciate the solid results unless they come in tandem with an upward revision of profit forecasts that exceed market's expectation,' Shimizu said in a note to clients.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 146.32 points or 1.1 percent at 13,211.99, while the Nasdaq composite index fell 37.01 points or 1.4 percent to 2,546.27.

The Chicago-traded Nikkei futures contract settled at 17,140 points, down from 17,280 at the Osaka Securities Exchange on Tuesday, suggesting a weak start for the market.

On the Tokyo bourse, the Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed 40.41 points or 0.2 percent lower at 17,248.89, while the broader TOPIX index inched up 0.47 point to 1,706.18.

Ahead, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association and Japan Minivehicle Association will release sales figures for July.

The National Tax Agency will release land prices along selected major roads, which are used in calculating inheritance tax and is one of three land price surveys done by the government.

Stocks to watch include Nikon Corp after the company reported a 59 percent year-on-year rise in net profit for the April-June quarter and hiked its full-year forecasts amid buoyant sales of its digital cameras and a weaker yen.

Tokyo Electric Power Co may fall after the Japanese operator of the world's largest nuclear power plant slashed its net profit forecast for the year by 80 percent after the facility was damaged in an earthquake.

Hitachi and NEC Corp may be active after the two electronics companies reported much improved operating earnings for the fiscal first quarter.

(1 US dollar = 118.55 yen)

yasuhiko.seki@thomson.com

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