P. M. BRIEFING : Tokyo Exchange Stocks Plunge
Stock prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange plummeted today on growing speculation the Bank of Japan may raise its official discount rate.
The blue-chip Nikkei Average of 225 selected shares, which posted a marginal gain of 7.51 points on Thursday, plunged 634.10 points to end the week at 32,421.52.
The broader-based Tokyo Stock Exchange Price Index of all major shares, which fell 4.7 points Thursday, tumbled 29.65 points to 2,363.43.
An estimated 500 million shares changed hands, compared with 621 million shares Thursday.
Declines hammered advances 738 to 224, while 159 issues remained unchanged.
Share prices staged a steep drop in the final hour of trading when Yasushi Mieno, central bank governor, warned that the nation’s money supply has grown too fast and said the central bank will keep a close watch on the recent heating price trend.
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