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Tokyo stocks dip at open, yen weighs
TOKYO, Japan -- Tokyo stocks dipped at the open on Thursday, with a stronger yen and the threat of selling by banks and insurers continuing to weigh on blue chips. Toyota Motor Corp, Japan's biggest automaker, was down 0.51 percent at 2,920 yen, while Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd, the maker of Panasonic brand goods, dipped 1.55 percent to 1,140 yen ahead of its quarterly earnings report due later in the day. The U.S. dollar dropped overnight to a three-week low of around 118.60 yen . A stronger yen erodes exporters' profits abroad when repatriated home. The Nikkei average was down 0.71 percent at 8,617.04 soon after the opening. The broader TOPIX index had fallen 0.67 percent to 847.84. Banks and insurers are rushing to offload shares ahead of book-closing on March 31 to reduce their exposure to market swings. In South Korea, the Kospi was 0.59 percent stronger at 604.30 in early trading. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index was weaker, losing nearly 1 percent in value to 2840 shortly before noon local time. Leading airline Qantas Airways was a big loser, shedding A28c to A$3.51 despite the carrier notching up a slightly-better-than expected doubling in half year profit to A$352.5 million. Media giant News Corp was A24c softer at A$10.89, while resources major BHP Billiton shed A9c to A$9.33. In New Zealand the NZSE Top 40 index was 0.6 percent down at 1942.68 in afternoon trading. Reuters contributed to this report.
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