Japan stock market week to Mar 3, 2008

Tokyo retreated in the week to March 3, due to weak New York markets and the resurgence of the yen versus the dollar. The Nikkei 225 dropped 6.6%, to finish below the 13,000-mark, while the Topix index fell 6.2%. Investors were encouraged early in the period by US credit rating companies, such as Standard & Poor, affirming the top rating for leading American bond insurers. However, the positive view was eliminated later after the US Federal Reserve Bank's chairman warned about possible bankruptcy of small banks which have real estate investments. Investors worried about the prospect for global credit and financial markets. The pharmaceutical index was off 4.9%, but still outperformed the market.