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| - Tokyo stocks opened higher on Tuesday in cautious trade, despite continued worries about the spread of the new coronavirus in Japan and its impact on the economy. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.48 percent, or 91.91 points, at 19,135.31 in early trade, while the broader Topix index edged up 0.28 percent, or 3.91 points, to 1,409.82. Trade lacked clear drivers to push up share prices as investors remained "cautious over the expansion of new coronavirus infections in Japan and could not set aside worries about a weak economy and corporate performances," chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito of Okasan Online Securities said in a note. However some bargain-hunting purchases were supporting the market after a sharp fall in the previous session, Toshiyuki Kanayama, senior analyst at Monex, said in a commentary. The dollar fetched 107.56 yen in early Asian trade, against 107.75 yen in New York late Monday. In Tokyo, some chip-related shares were higher with semiconductor-testing equipment maker Advantest gaining 2.37 percent to 4,535 yen and parts maker Shin-Etsu Chemical trading up 1.03 percent at 11,240 yen. SoftBank Group dropped 3.21 percent to 4,065 yen after it said late Monday it now forecasts a $7 billion net loss for the year ended March due to the negative impact of coronavirus and losses related to WeWork. On Wall Street, the Dow ended down 1.4 percent at 23,390.77. kh/sah/mtp
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