Headline indices of the Japan share market were tad higher on Wednesday, 24 October 2018, as investors chased for bottom fishing after a sharp drop a day earlier on lingering worries over geopolitical risks. Total 23 issues of TSE 33 issues inclined, with shares in Fishery, Agriculture & Forestry, Construction, Foods, Warehousing & Harbor Transportation Services, and Electric Power & Gasissues being notable gainers, while shares of Mining, Marine Transportation, Insurance, Glass & Ceramics Products, Banks, and Oil & Coal Products issues were notable losers. In late afternoon trades, the 225-issue Nikkei index advanced 116.05 points, or 0.53%, at 22,126.83. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 4.24 points, or 0.26%, to 1,654.96.
Global stocks have suffered this week on worries about US earnings, Italian government finances, US trade tensions and mounting pressure on Saudi Arabia over the death of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Saudi Arabia's diplomatic standing looked increasingly precarious as Turkey dismissed the kingdom's efforts to blame Khashoggi's death on rogue operatives while U.S. President Donald Trump said Riyadh staged the worst cover-up ever.
Shares of SoftBank inclined following reports that its founder Masayoshi Son had skipped an investment forum in Saudi, but had met with crown prince Mohammed bin Salman.
ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Nikkei Manufacturing PMI Expands To 53.1 In October-- Japan manufacturing sector continued to expand in October, and at a faster rate, the latest survey from Nikkei revealed on Wednesday with a preliminary reading of 53.1. That's up from 52.5 in September, and it moves farther above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Individually, output, new orders and employment all accelerated, while the rates of input cost and output price inflation both climbed to multi-year highs. Sentiment for future expectations remained positive, although the optimism was weaker.
CURRENCY NEWS: Japanese yen was little changed against greenback on Wednesday. The dollar fetched 112.37 yen in Asian trade against 112.41 yen in New York late Tuesday.
OFFSHORE MARKET: US stock market closed down Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 125.98 points or 0.5% at 25,191.43. The Nasdaq fell 31.09 points or 0.4% to 7,437.54 and the S&P 500 slid 15.19 points or 0.6% to 2,740.69.
European markets also ended down on Tuesday. The German DAX Index plunged by 2.2%. The French CAC 40 Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slumped by 1.7% and 1.2%, respectively.