TOKYO: Tokyo stocks plunged nearly three percent Monday as attacks on Ukraine intensified while nations and businesses imposed more sanctions against Russia.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 2.94 percent, or 764.06 points to end at 25,221.41, its lowest close since November 2020.
The broader Topix index fell 2.76 percent, or 50.91 points, to 1,794.03.
The dollar fetched 114.95 yen, compared with 114.69 yen in New York on Friday.
Stock prices began to head south from the opening bell, following falls last week on Wall Street, while investors remained wary of soaring crude oil prices.
During the session, Brent oil leapt to almost $140 per barrel, the highest since 2008 and nearing an all-time record.
"The Nikkei index opened lower as investors watched developments in Ukraine," Okasan Online Securities said.
"Speculation over further US sanctions against Russia triggered worries that oil prices may climb higher and weigh on the global market," it added.
Bargain-hunting saved the Nikkei from falling below the 25,000 mark, however.
Among major shares, Sony Group fell 2.42 percent to 11,110 yen and SoftBank Group dropped 5.16 percent to 4,707 yen. Electronics maker Panasonic fell 5.17 percent to 1,055.5 yen.
Toyota plunged 6.53 percent to 1,845 yen.
Advantest, which makes testing kits for semiconductors, gave up 5.58 percent to 8,120 yen.
Fast Retailing, which has said its Uniqlo stores in Russia will continue to operate for now, trimmed losses and ended down 0.95 percent to 60,710 yen.
Comments
Comments are closed.