Nikkei Index Surges: Wall Street Gains and Weaker Yen Boost Japanese Stocks

Japan's Nikkei rallies on Wall Street gains, softer yen

Among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry groupings, transport equipment, which includes automakers, climbed 2.4% and was among the top performers. Toyota Motor gained 3.8%, while Kawasaki Heavy Industries led the sector with a 6.3% rise. Japan's technology shares tracked their U.S. peers higher to offer the Nikkei the largest lift.Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Thursday after a seven-day slide, as Wall Street's overnight gains and a weaker yen buoyed investor sentiment. The Nikkei index closed 3.4% higher at 36,833.27 in broad-based buying. The broader Topix finished up 2.4% at 2,592.5. The yen softened after hitting its highest against the dollar this year in the previous session. "Due to the impact of the (U.S.) consumer price index report, we are seeing the yen trend weaker. This seems to be contributing to positive movements in Japanese stocks," said Hiroshi Namioka, chief strategist at T&D Asset Management. In a boost to the dollar, Wednesday's CPI report indicated some stickiness in inflation, crushing bets that the Federal Reserve would cut interest rates by 50 basis points next week. Shares of exporters, which tend to benefit from a weaker domestic currency, rebounded. Among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry groupings, transport equipment, which includes automakers, climbed 2.4% and was among the top performers. Toyota Motor gained 3.8%, while Kawasaki Heavy Industries led the sector with a 6.3% rise. Japan's technology shares tracked their U.S. peers higher to offer the Nikkei the largest lift. All three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher on Wednesday, helped by gains in the technology sector. The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index surged, with AI chipmaker Nvidia adding 8%. Chip-making equipment giant Tokyo Electron jumped 4.8%, while Advantest, which counts Nvidia among its customers, was up 9.2%. AI-focused startup investor SoftBank Group rose about 8%. Other major shares also rose, with Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing climbing 3.8% to give the Nikkei the biggest boost. Shares of Seven & i Holdings rose more than 4% after Bloomberg News reported that Canada's Alimentation Couche-Tard was discussing how much it could raise the offer price to buy the firm. Of the Nikkei's 225 constituents, 222 rose, while 3 fell.

Tokyo's Nikkei index jumps 3% at open

Tokyo's Nikkei index jumped more than three percent at the open on Thursday following a rally in US tech stocks, as a weaker yen boosted investor sentiment. The benchmark Nikkei 225 added 3.15 percent, or 1,123.20 points, to 36,742.97 in early trade, while the broader Topix index climbed 2.47 percent, or 62.41 points, to 2,593.08. Investors are eyeing whether the Nikkei is able to sustain its momentum above the psychologically significant 36,000 point, brokerage house Monex said. "The market is expected to gain sharply at the start of trading, given the cheaper yen and rallies in US high-tech shares," it said. The dollar stood at 142.76 yen, compared with 142.38 yen overnight in New York. A weak yen is a plus for Japanese exporters as it boosts overseas profits. On Wall Street on Wednesday, semiconductor stocks -- which have been under pressure in recent weeks -- were among the strongest performers as shares rebounded to finish higher following mixed US inflation data. Artificial intelligence star Nvidia rose more than eight percent and Micron and Intel also notched big gains. Investors saw the monthly consumer price index as likely to keep the Federal Reserve on track to cut interest rates while weakening the case for a larger reduction. Among major shares in Tokyo, heavily weighted semiconductor firm Tokyo Electron soared 5.13 percent to 23,350 yen. Toyota jumped 2.70 percent to 2,487.5 yen. Sony Group added 2.55 percent to 13,495 yen.