Wall Street Rally Sends Nikkei Soaring
The Nikkei 225 rose 0.7% to around 44,700 and the Topix gained 0.5% to 3,165 on Friday, with Japanese equities hitting new record highs in line with Wall Street's overnight rally. On Thursday, all three major US benchmark indexes closed at all-time highs as evidence of a cooling labor market and subdued inflation reinforced expectations of a deeper Federal Reserve interest rate cut. In Japan, investors weighed the Bank of Japan's policy outlook against mixed economic indicators and continued political uncertainty. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba recently announced his resignation, facing mounting pressure after last year's election defeat and widening divisions within the ruling party. Among the stocks that moved significantly were Tokyo Electron (up 3%), Fast Retailing (up 1.3%), and Sony Group (up 1.7%). For the week, the Nikkei is expected to rise around 4% and the Topix (up 2%).
Source: Newsmaker.id