Japanese stocks were trading slightly lower on Wednesday, ahead of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meeting in Vienna. The Nikkei 225 dropped 0.01 percent, or 2.54 points to 18,304.50, and the TOPIX fell 0.08 percent, or 1.21 points to 1,467.35.
iShares MSCI Japan ETF EWJ shares rose 0.10 percent to close at $49.97, while iShares MSCI Pacific ex-Japan Idx (ETF) EPP gained 0.19 percent to close at $41.35 on Tuesday.
The U.S. dollar was trading at 112.60 against the Japanese yen, after rising to 113.340 overnight.
West Texas Intermediate for January delivery rose 0.62 percent to trade at $45.51 per barrel on the NYMEX, while Brent for January settlement rose 0.97 percent to $46.83 per barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange.
U.S. markets closed higher on Tuesday, with the Dow gaining 0.12 percent to 19,121.60, and the NASDAQ rising 0.21 percent to 5,379.92. The U.S. economy expanded at an annual rate of 3.2 percent in the third quarter. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index surged to 107.10 in November, versus a prior reading of 98.60.
Top market movers among the Japanese market are as follows:
- Shares of Kuroda Precision Industries Ltd (7726) climbed around 32 percent to 206.0 JPY.
- Food Planet Inc (7853) shares rose around 20 percent to 12.0 JPY.
- Es-con Japan Ltd (8892) shares increased over 19 percent to 397.0 JPY.
- Interlife Holdings Co Ltd (1418) shares dropped around 10 percent to 379.0 JPY.
- Cluster Technology Co Ltd (4240) declined over 9 percent to 560.0 JPY.
- Astmax Co Ltd (7162) shares fell 8 percent to 590.0 JPY.
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