Tokyo shares open lower ahead of BoJ decision

AFP :
Tokyo shares opened lower on Friday despite rallies on Wall Street, with traders eyeing the Bank of Japan’s policy announcement later in the day.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index slipped 0.51 percent, or 170.96 points, to 33,314.53, while the broader Topix index fell 0.25 percent, or 5.82 points, to 2,888.15.
“Today’s market is expected to move in a narrow range,” Monex senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama said.
“No change in monetary policy is expected, but traders are closely watching the results of the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy meeting due to be announced around noon,” he said in a note.
Investors also digested the announcement by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday evening saying he does not plan to dissolve the lower house, triggering a snap election, during the parliamentary session scheduled to end next week.
In New York, all three major indices jumped more than one percent, a day after the Fed kept rates unchanged but signalled it expects further hikes this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.3 percent while the broad-based S&P 500 climbed 1.2 percent. The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index also advanced 1.2 percent.
In Tokyo trading, Sony Group dropped 1.51 percent to 13,740 yen while chip- testing equipment maker Advantest lost 1.13 percent to 19,330.
Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing fell 0.82 percent to 36,270 yen while Nintendo slid 0.80 percent to 6,175 yen.
The dollar traded at 140.23 yen, almost unchanged from 140.27 yen in New York on Thursday.