BoJ inaction frustrates investors

Disappointment over the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) decision not to expand its stimulus drive was likely to hang over the Japanese market next week, dealers said, as the benchmark Nikkei 225 index tumbled to its lowest level in six months on Friday. Tokyo stocks took a pounding after a rout on Wall Street with the Nikkei tumbling 2.38 per cent to its worst close since October, and leading a broader decline in Asian markets. The Nikkei shed 340.07 points to finish at 13,960.05, with the headline index losing a whopping 7.33 per cent since last Monday. That was the Nikkei's worst weekly performance since a 10-per cent decline in the period after Japan's 2011 quake-tsunami disaster, according to Dow Jones Newswires. The Topix index of all first-section shares lost 1.34 per cent, or 15.40 points, to end at 1,134.09. It fell 6.73 per cent over the week, according to a news agency.