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Mix-Ansicht- Schumpeter lacht: Japan bestellt Reichsverweser Takeshi Kimura (E) - El Sheik, 02.10.2002, 09:27
- Es passiert wirklich etwas: Neue Transparenz bei japanischen Bankkrediten (E) - El Sheik, 02.10.2002, 09:38
Schumpeter lacht: Japan bestellt Reichsverweser Takeshi Kimura (E)
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Wednesday, October 2, 2002
Stocks: End At 19-Yr Low; Possible Tough Line On Bks
TOKYO (Dow Jones)--The Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell to a new 19-year closing low Wednesday, as evidence grew Japan may take strident steps over banks' bad loans.
Early gains on a higher close in the U.S. were lost following local reports a well-known reform-minded financial consultant will be appointed to the Financial Services Agency's special project team to tackle banks' bad loans.
The possible appointment of Takeshi Kimura of KPMG Financial Service Consulting raised concerns in the market that banks may be forced to swallow sizable bad loan write-offs.
"If things go the way (Kimura) has been insisting, heavily indebted companies will be forced into failure, and banks consequently will feel the pain" of having to write-off loans, said Masatsugu Okeya, general manager of Chuo Securities' stock division.
The Nikkei finished down 112.93 points, or 1.2%, at 9049.33 after rising to a high of 9293.86 in the first ten minutes of trade. The index slipped 221.03 points Tuesday.
It was the first time the historic low had been renewed since the Nikkei closed at 9075.09 on Sept. 4.
Traders said the index may slip below 9000 points again before Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi unveils anti-deflation and bad-loan cleanup measures later this month.
The last time the Nikkei went under 9000 on an intraday basis was Sept. 6.
But Chuo's Okeya said the benchmark index is"unlikely to stay below 9000 points too long" as market participants are well aware that Japan has to go through a painful banking sector reform sooner or later.
Until the details of the reform program become clearer,"we can't tell for sure how much pain the market can tolerate," he said.
Kimura has frequently appeared on national television debate programs, and is a vocal advocate of a hard-line approach to corporate restructuring. His views are known to Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
Heizo Takenaka, who oversees the FSA, announced the creation of the FSA project team Tuesday.
The Topix index of all issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section fell 10.14 points, or 1.1%, to 893.23.
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