Shares in Uniqlo operator down 10% in Tokyo trading
Shares in Fast Retailing, the operator of Japanese casual fashion brand Uniqlo, were down 10 percent in early Tokyo trading Friday after it posted a sharp decline in half-year profit.
Fast Retailing was down 9.05 percent at 22,730.0 yen about 22 minutes after the opening bell at the Tokyo Stock Exchange after earlier dropping 10.31 percent to 27,345.0 yen.
The market heavyweight said Thursday that net profit in the September-February period dropped 55.1 percent from a year earlier to 47 billion yen ($440 million) on weaker sales in Japan, China, South Korea and the United States.
It estimates that profit for the full year ending in August will be 45.5 percent lower, at 60 billion yen, from the year before, it said.
The Tokyo bourse's benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 1.48 percent shortly after the opening bell, following a weak lead from Wall Street and as the yen's ongoing strength weighed on exporters.