Investing.com – Japan stocks were lower after the close on Thursday, as losses in the Steel, Chemical, Petroleum & Plastic and Non-Metal Minerals sectors led shares lower.
At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell 0.50%.
The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were SUMCO Corp. (T:3436), which rose 6.20% or 109.0 points to trade at 1868.0 at the close. Meanwhile, Nichirei Corp. (T:2871) added 5.72% or 134.0 points to end at 2475.0 and Toho Zinc Co., Ltd. (T:5707) was up 3.75% or 21.0 points to 581.0 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were Hitachi, Ltd. (T:6501), which fell 8.10% or 54.8 points to trade at 621.8 at the close. Ebara Corp. (T:6361) declined 7.53% or 260.0 points to end at 3195.0 and Toshiba Corp. (T:6502) was down 6.74% or 16.3 points to 225.4.
Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 1726 to 1235 and 368 ended unchanged.
Shares in SUMCO Corp. (T:3436) rose to 52-week highs; gaining 6.20% or 109.0 to 1868.0. Shares in Toho Zinc Co., Ltd. (T:5707) rose to 5-year highs; rising 3.75% or 21.0 to 581.0.
The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was down 6.35% to 18.13.
Crude oil for March delivery was up 0.52% or 0.27 to $52.61 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in April rose 0.60% or 0.33 to hit $55.45 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 0.13% or 1.55 to trade at $1241.05 a troy ounce.
USD/JPY was up 0.28% to 112.25, while EUR/JPY rose 0.05% to 119.83.
The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.24% at 100.38.