The Nikkei average is slightly up, with the morning gains narrowing due to the strong yen, resulting in profit-taking selling.

September 2, 2024, 3:49 PM GMT+9 (excerpt)

In the Tokyo stock market, the Nikkei average closed slightly higher at 38,700.87 yen, up 53.12 yen from the previous trading day. In the morning, it recovered the psychological milestone of the 39,000 yen range as a result of the rise in US stocks at the end of last week and the high dollar and low yen, but gradually lost ground and temporarily fell into negative territory. The profit-taking selling spread as the yen's weakening trend subsided in the foreign exchange market during trading hours.
The Nikkei average opened 377 points higher and soon hit a high of 39,080.64 yen, up 432 yen. This marked a recovery to the level not seen since July 31, when the Bank of Japan's monetary policy meeting and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting were held, triggering a rapid decline in stock prices.
However, the dollar/yen that rose to around 146 yen in the early morning from the previous weekend faced strong resistance, and temporarily fell to around 145 yen in the afternoon. As a result, the Nikkei average hit a low of 38,476.51 yen, down 171 yen, due to profit-taking selling, and then remained in a narrow range of slight gains towards the closing.