Japanese stocks moved lower early Monday, as a stronger yen and
the unrest in Ukraine weighed on sentiment in Tokyo, at the
beginning of a week that will be busy with regional earnings and
economic news.
The Nikkei lost 1.3% as the yen strengthened closer to the
Yen102 to the dollar mark. The dollar was last at Yen102.07,
compared with Yen102.19 late Friday night in New York, with the
safe haven currency firming up as U.S. and European governments
planned to ramp up sanctions against Russia as early as Monday. The
move comes as pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine on Sunday
paraded Western military observers as hostages.
Also weighing on sentiment in Japan was a disappointing earnings
report from Japan's second-largest car company, with Honda Motor
Co. losing 4.8% after its earnings guidance missed expectations.
The company said that it expects its net income to rise 3.6% this
fiscal year, but it is much slower than the recently ended fiscal
year, when its net income soared by 56%.
Elsewhere in Asia, markets stuck close to the breakeven mark:
Australia's S&P ASX 200 was less than 0.1% lower and South
Korea's Kospi added 0.1%.
The region was preparing for upcoming events that could have a
market impact. In Asia, the main piece of economic data will be
Chinese manufacturing numbers for April, out Thursday; while out of
the U.S., investors will be looking ahead to the Federal Reserve's
policy meeting that concludes Wednesday and the monthly labor
report at the end of the week.
In corporate news, pharmaceutical company Acrux sank 16% in
Australia. The sharp fall came after its partner Eli Lilly reported
a 27% drop in first quarter sales of testosterone treatment Axiron,
leading Acrux to acknowledge that an expected $50 million milestone
payment may not be met in the 2014 fiscal year.
Write to Daniel Inman at daniel.inman@wsj.com