Japan markets flat after opposition’s landslide win
01 Sep 2009
Japan's Nikkei average was unchanged at 10,512.30 at noon, while the broader Topix was also flat, at 964.94, a day after the markets cheered Japanese opposition's landslide victory by chasing stocks up to the highest level of 2009.
The decisive victory by the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) ends more than half a century of almost unbroken conservative rule.
The DPJ secured 308 seats in the powerful 480-seat House of Representatives. The Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which ruled Japan for almost half a century, by contrast won only 119 seats and its smaller ally New Komeito won 21 seats.
Three other parties in the opposition bloc, Social Democratic Party, the Japanese Communist Party and the People's New Party won seven, nine and three seats, respectively.
Before the election, the LDP had 300 seats and its partner New Komeito 31, compared with 115 held by the DPJ.
At a news conference at his Tokyo home a day after the elections, prime minister-designate Yukio Hatoyama acknowledged Sunday's historic vote, but warned that there were challenges ahead.