Dow's Slip Below 10,000 Unlikely To Hit Tokyo Stocks
Sunday, February 27, 2000
TOKYO (Nikkei)--The fall of the Dow Jones industrial average below 10,000 on the New York Stock Exchange will likely have only a limited impact on Japanese stocks as technology shares remain at all-time highs on the U.S. Nasdaq market, many market observers say. This should reassure traders of Japanese high-tech issues.
The Japanese stock market has recently become more sensitive to the Nasdaq market than to Wall Street. The Nikkei Stock Average extended gains on Friday to hit its highest level since the 20,007 recorded on Feb. 9, driven up by the Nasdaq market's climb to a record high the previous day. The U.S. over-the-counter market has been vibrant recently on growing fund inflows from large-capitalization shares.
"U.S. high-tech shares have been actively bought on their high growth potential and thus won't be vulnerable to small interest rate hikes," said a market watcher, referring to the recent polarization between Nasdaq and Wall Street.
Meanwhile, the outlook for Japan's economic recovery remains uncertain, as its gross domestic product is believed to have contracted in October-December for the second quarter in a row. So, only technology shares and limited types of other issues will likely be chased in Japan for some time to come, with domestic demand-led issues to continue to be ignored, analysts say.
(The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Sunday edition) |
