Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index rallied nearly one percent on Thursday, tracking rebounds on Wall Street after US President Donald Trump appeared to reverse his decision to put off new stimulus.

The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.96 percent, or 224.25 points, to close at 23,647.07, while the broader Topix index gained 0.55 percent, or 9.00 points, to 1,655.47.

“Japanese shares positively reacted to expectations for additional stimulus in the US,” said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager at Chibagin Asset Management.

“But trading remains cautious” due to uncertainties over the US presidential election, he told AFP.
“The Tokyo market will continue to be affected by daily trading of US shares for now,” Okumura added.

US stocks rebounded Wednesday after Trump appeared to partially reverse his decision to end talks on a fiscal package, and called for stimulus payments.

Wall Street’s main indices had fallen sharply on Tuesday — also sending Japanese shares lower — after Trump abruptly halted talks with Democrats on another stimulus package as the US economic recovery loses steam.

But late Tuesday, Trump called for Congress to “immediately” pass legislation to extend aid for airline workers and small businesses.

Trump also said he would back another round of $1,200 stimulus payments for workers.
The dollar fetched 105.99 yen in Asian afternoon trade, against 105.96 yen in New York late Wednesday.

In Tokyo, SoftBank jumped 1.86 percent to 7,085 yen as Toyota rose 0.44 percent to 7,034 yen with Sony up 0.79 percent at 7,832 yen.

ANA Holdings was down 1.67 percent at 2,438.5 yen after a report said it plans to slash salaries for all employees by 30 percent. Its rival Japan Airlines was down 0.66 percent at 2,006.5 yen.

AFP