The Japanese stock market started the new stock market almost flat on Tuesday. Investors took it easy after the substantial price gains in August and processed a series of macroeconomic data from Japan and China.
The other major stock market indicators in the Asian region showed a mixed picture.
The Nikkei in Tokyo closed a fraction lower at 23,138.07 points. Figures from market researchers Markit and Jibun Bank showed that activity in the Japanese industry contracted again last month.
The contraction was less marked than in July. Unemployment in Japan increased slightly in July compared to a month earlier.
Among the companies, the Japanese trading houses Marubeni, Sumitomo, Mitsubishi, Mitsui and Itochu regained ground.
The five trading houses rose to almost 10 percent a day earlier after the news that the American investor Warren Buffett has taken interests of more than 5 percent in the companies.
The main index in Shanghai was marginally lower in the meantime, and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index gained 0.1 percent.
According to research firms Markit and Caixin, activity in the massive industry rose in August to the highest level since early 2011. The Kospi in Seoul thickened 1 percent. The All Ordinaries in Sydney fell 1.5 percent following the Australian central bank’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged as expected.
The central bank did, however, increase the size of a bank financing facility and extend its term. This gives banks more convenient access to money.
