Roundup: Tokyo stocks close lower on profit-taking after Nikkei's fresh 30-year high

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TOKYO, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed lower Monday as investors, following a week lead from Wall Street, took to profit-taking to lock in gains made following the Nikkei hitting a fresh 30-year high late last week.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 276.97 points, or 0.97 percent, from Friday to close the day at 28,242.21.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 11.12 points, or 0.60 percent, to finish at 1,845.49.

Investors opted to take profits following the market's recent rise to a run of 30-year closing highs and on concerns of overheating, local brokers said.

"The market's rally over the last month has been so fast that many people are feeling that there's a bit of over-heating here," Takeo Kamai, head of execution services at CLSA, was quoted as saying.

Other analysts said that it was not unusual for such a correction to occur, considering how much the market had gained of late.

"It is not surprising to see a correction, considering the sharp upswing so far this month," Masahiro Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Co., said.

Investors were also watching to see if U.S. President-elect Joe Biden's huge stimulus plan may be scaled down after negotiations with Republicans, analysts here also said, and in terms of domestic issues, COVID-19 aside, investors were eyeing the Bank of Japan as it might raise its key interest rate.

By the close of play, mining, marine transportation and insurance-oriented issues comprised those that declined the most.

Chip-related issues also came under pressure, with Advantest dropping 1.9 percent, while Tokyo Electron lost 1.6 percent.

Nikon fell 6.8 percent after booking solid gains earlier this month.

Some retail issues including department stores weighed on concerns of falling profits amid the state of emergency over the coronavirus and a lack of patronage and on fear of further restrictions on people's movements if the virus continues to spread at its current high levels.

Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings lost 6.6 percent and J. Front Retailing retreated 5.6 percent.

Issues that fell outpaced those that rose by 1,195 to 888 on the First Section, while 106 ended the day unchanged.

On the main section on Monday, 908.54 million shares changed hands, dropping from Friday's volume of 1,249.26 million shares.

The turnover on the first trading day of the week came to 1,932.08 billion yen (18.61 billion U.S. dollars). Enditem

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