2018-11-01
Japan's Nikkei <.N225> was down on Thursday as shares in major mobile phone operators plunged after NTT DoCoMo announced that lower service charges would have a negative impact on its earnings next year, fueling concerns over earnings forecasts.
 
In the first trading day in November, the benchmark Nikkei <.N225> was down 1.1 percent at 21,687.65.
 
The index fell 9.1 percent in October, its biggest monthly decline since June 2016.
 
The telecom sector fell 8.3 percent and was the worst performing sector in the market.
 
NTT DoCoMo said it would cut service fees by 20 percent to 40 percent between April and June, which would affect its profits from next fiscal year. The company's share plunged more than 15 percent to a two-year low.
 
KDDI Corp fell 16 percent to its lowest level in four years, while Softbank dropped 8.2 percent after DoCoMo's news began to put pressure on the technology giant, which is preparing to launch a planned initial public offering for its mobile phone in December. .
 
In late trading, Rakotein, the giant e-commerce giant that plans to enter mobile phone activity next year, has closed and closed at 3 percent after the Nikkei daily reported that the company would work with KDDI in mobile payments .
 
Panasonic shares fell 5.6 percent after the company reported a 15 percent drop in operating profit in the third quarter due to higher costs at its battery plant, which is jointly run by US automaker Tesla.
 
Yamaha Motor dropped 15 percent after the company slashed its annual operating profit outlook on weak motorcycle sales in emerging markets.
 
On the other hand, Murata Manufacturing, which manufactures smartphones, jumped 9.7 percent after the company raised its forecast for annual operating profit.
 
Financial stocks rose. Dai-Aichi Life Holdings rose 1.8 percent, while T & D Holdings gained 1.4 percent.
 
The broader Topix index <.TOPX> was down 0.9 percent at 1,632.05