Japanese Shares Close Lower on Renewed Middle East Tensions
Japanese shares closed Monday's session lower amid expectations of prolonged high U.S. interest rates.The Nikkei 225 retreated 3.9%, or by 2,563.52 points, to end at 64,024.60.Investor sentiment was also dampened by the rise in oil prices on Monday, adding to concerns over inflation, after a flare-up of tensions between Iran and Israel over the weekend. The two countries exchanged strikes for the first time since a ceasefire was agreed between them in April.On the domestic front, Japan's economy expanded at an annualized rate of 1.8% in the first quarter. The reading was softer than the preliminary estimate of a 2.1% increase, and against the 0.7% growth in the previous quarter, according to Cabinet Office data released on Monday.On the corporate side, shares of Tomoe Engineering (TYO:6309) closed 5% higher after the company raised its earnings forecast for the fiscal year ending Oct. 31, with projected net income increasing to 4.4 billion yen from 4.2 billion yen.Meanwhile, Sparx (TYO:8739) said its assets under management rose 6.8% from a month earlier to 2.601 trillion yen in May. The company's shares closed down over 1%.