Tokyo Markets End Sharply Higher

Tokyo, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 6th Dec, 2023) Tokyo stocks ended sharply higher on Wednesday supported by gains in US high-tech shares as investors digested data suggesting a slowing US labour market.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 2.04 percent, or 670.08 points, to end at 33,445.90, while the broader Topix index added 1.90 percent, or 44.51 points, to 2,387.20.

The Dollar fetched 147.21 yen, against 147.16 Yen in New York late Tuesday.

Overnight, US Labor Department data showed a drop of more than 600,000 job openings at the end of October, offering further indication that the US economy is cooling.

The Tokyo market started higher at the open as "high-priced shares like those linked to semiconductors rebounded significantly," IwaiCosmo Securities said.

The Nikkei then quickly topped the 33,000-point mark and "continued to widen gains to offset sharp losses from the previous day", the brokerage said.

The Tokyo market was also supported by the CEO of chip titan Nvidia meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida this week, where he "promised to increase supply of graphics processing units, or GPUs", said market analyst Takuma Ikemoto from the Tokai Tokyo Research Institute.

Among major shares in Tokyo, chip-testing equipment maker Advantest climbed 2.99 percent to 4,432 yen, Sony Group surged 3.95 percent to 13,130 yen and Toyota jumped 2.66 percent to 2,827 yen.