:::LALKAR GROUP::::

Japan shares declined from 30-year peak on Friday, 22 January 2021, with the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index and Topix index both settling lower, as investors opted to secure recent profits ahead of the corporate earnings reports next week.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 125.41 points, or 0.44%, to 28,631.45 after ending the previous day at 28,756.86, its highest since August 1990. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange fell 4.00 points, or 0.22%, to 1,856.64.

Ad agency Dentsu Group closed 2.2% down after reports that the Japanese government has privately concluded that the Tokyo Olympics will be cancelled. The government flatly denied the report.

Nippon Steel fell 3.5% after announcing plans to boost its stake in Tokyo Rope in a public tender offer. Tokyo Rope surged 28% to a limit high after being untraded earlier in the session with a glut of bids.

Shiseido jumped 4.3% after the cosmetic firm said it was in talks to sell its shampoo and skincare business to private equity CVC Capital Partners.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Japan Jibun Manufacturing PMI Contracts In December- Japan manufacturing sector slipped into contraction in December with a manufacturing PMI score of 49.7, the latest survey from Jibun Bank showed on Friday. That's down from November's reading that was right on the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction. Individually, new orders moved to expansion for the first time in two years but were offset by falling output and employment levels. The services PMI had a score of 45.7 last month, down from 47.7 in November. The composite index came in at 46.7, down from 48.5 in November.

Japan Consumer Prices Fall 1.2% On Year In December- Japan consumer prices were down 1.2 percent on year in December, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said on Friday, following the 0.9 percent decline in November. Core consumer prices were down 1.0 percent on year after also slipping 0.9 percent in the previous month. Among the individual components, prices were down for fuel, food, medical care, transportation, education and recreation on a yearly basis. Prices were up for housing, furniture and clothing. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, overall inflation was down 0.1 percent and core CPI was flat.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen traded at 103.63 per dollar, following an earlier high of 103.46 against the greenback.