TOKYO: Japanese shares eased on Wednesday as the market caught up with the losses in global markets following the country’s long weekend, weighed down by fears about rising coronavirus infections and a delay in US fiscal stimulus.

Automakers and other value shares fell the most, but losses were capped as gaming companies and internet-related stocks outperformed on worries about the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Nikkei share average shed 0.06% on its first trade since Friday to 23,346.49. The broader Topix was down 0.13% at 1,644.25.

The Topix value index lost 0.70%, compared with a 0.34% gain in growth shares.

Suzuki Motor declined 3.6%, while Honda Motor and Nissan Motor dropped 2.8% and 3.2%, respectively.

Panasonic fell 3.7% after Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk said its highly anticipated new low-cost battery could take three years.

On the other hand, investors flocked to stay-at-home winners such as gaming companies. Bandai Namco rose 3.4% and Cyber Agent gained 6.0%.

Internet infrastructure companies also did well, with NTT Data rising 3.4%.

Fujifilm jumped 4.9% after the company said a late-stage study of its antiviral drug Avigan showed it was effective against Covid-19.—Reuters