TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average lost more than 1,100 points early Monday afternoon, mainly because high-tech issues succumbed to heavy selling following drops in their U.S. counterparts.

At 1:13 p.m., the benchmark index stood at 38,588.88, down 1,100.06 points, or 2.77 percent, from Friday.

High-tech issues that were the driving force behind the Nikkei average’s strong performance since the start of this year, such as Tokyo Electron and SoftBank Group, plunged after the U.S. SOX Philadelphia semiconductor index plummeted Friday.

With the yen rising against the dollar, an official at a securities house said, “Investors sold shares in automakers and machinery makers out of concern that the stronger yen will weigh on their earnings.”

At 1 p.m., the dollar stood at 146.93-93 yen, down from 147.87-88 yen at 5 p.m. Friday.

The dollar fell below 147 yen due to yen buying and dollar selling ignited by differences in monetary policies between Japan and the United States.

Speculation has spread among market players that the Bank of Japan may revise its massive monetary easing regime, including by ending the negative interest rate policy, in its next policy-setting meeting from March 18.

On the other hand, investors took the U.S. employment data for February, released Friday, as a possible indicator that the U.S. Federal Reserve may move to lower interest rates.

JIJI Press