TOKYO: Japanese stocks plunged across the board in Tokyo trading Monday morning as sentiment worsened due to the intensified conflict in Ukraine and surging crude oil prices.

The Nikkei average of 225 selected issues traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s first section fell 819.24 points, or 3.15 percent, to finish the morning session at 25,166.23.

The index fell as low as 25,000.26 at point. It last traded below 25,000 on an intraday basis on Nov. 10, 2020.

The TOPIX index of all TSE first-section issues was down 53.16 points, or 2.88 percent, at 1,791.78.

Over 90 percent of TSE first-section issues dropped. “There was programmed selling by investment funds which wanted to hedge risks and selling of stock index futures for hedging purposes apparently from Japanese investors,” an official at a bank-affiliated securities house said.

Referring to a climb in crude oil futures and a slide in the 10-year US Treasury bond yield, an official at a Japanese investment company said, “Markets are factoring in stagflation in which elevated inflation and recession occur at the same time.”

JIJI Press