Nikkei Crosses Pre-Tsunami Level, Yen Drops Again

Nigel Thomas
27 Dec, 2012
New York City

The Nikkei index extended gains as the yen dropped to a new 2-year low and the newly elected government prepares for aggressive stimulus. The Nikkei surpassed the high on the day before the 2011 earthquake and extended six week rally to 16% and the gains in the year to 22.2%.

[R]7:00 PM Tokyo – The Nikkei index extended gains as the yen dropped to a new 2-year low and the newly elected government prepares for aggressive stimulus. The Nikkei surpassed the high on the day before the 2011 earthquake and extended six week rally to 16% and the gains in the year to 22.2%.[/R]

Stocks in Tokyo advanced and extended the gains of six week rally as the yen dropped more and finance minister worked to provide more aggressive stimulus.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 92.62 or 0.9% to 10,322.98 and the broader Topix Index gained 6.38 to 854.09.

The Nikkei surpassed the high last seen on March 10, 2011 the day before the earthquake and tsunami devastated Northern Japan.

The Nikkei index is up 22.2% for the year so far. The Topix index has advanced 17% so far in the year, the largest increase since 2005 when the index gained 44%.

The yen edged lower to 85.68 against one dollar, near the 27-month low in 2011 and traded as low as 85.73 in the session today.

Finance Minister Taro Aso said Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has asked him to prepare for stimulus measures and ignore the bond issuance limit set by the previous government.

Aso also said beating the strong yen and deflation are his top priorities.

Stocks in Review

Kansai Electric Power slumped 15 yen to 952 yen and Tokyo Electric Power Co decreased 8 yen to 220 yen. Shikoku Electric dropped 24 yen to 1,419 yen and Chubu Electric Power Co slipped 7 yen to 1,162 yen.

Toyota Motor Corp. climbed 100 yen to 3,930 yen and Honda Motor Co. jumped 50 yen to 3,110 yen and Nissan Motor Co Ltd increased 16 yen to 798 yen. Mazda Motor Corp soared 11 yen or 7.1% 166 yen. Isuzu Motors Ltd rose 2 yen to 489 yen.

Toyota also said it will settle claims for $1.1 billion related to lost value of its vehicles in the U.S. for sudden acceleration problem.

Nippon Steel slid 1 yen to 209 yen and JFE Holdings Inc increased 16 yen to 1,600 yen. Tokyo Steel Manufacturing gained 9 yen to 412 yen.

All Nippon Airways increased 5 yen to 181 yen and. JAL climbed 25 yen to 3,740 yen.

Fujikura Ltd added 8 yen to 263 yen and TDK jumped 30 yen to 3,130 yen. Murata Manufacturing Co climbed 125 yen to 4,920 yen and Meiko Electronics Co Ltd slipped 0.4% or 674 yen.

Shimano Inc advanced 110 yen to 5,590 yen.

Oki Electric Industry surged 7 yen or 7.5% to 101 yen, Ricoh Co Ltd lowered 4 yen to 903 yen, Sony Corp slid 1 yen to 942 and Seiko Epson Corp closed unchanged at 687 yen.

Canon Inc declined 40 yen to 3,270 yen and Nikon slipped 5 yen to 2,469 yen.

Olympus Corp. lowered 2 yen to 1,655 yen.

Nintendo Co. Ltd jumped 130 yen to 8,720 yen, Fujitsu added 4 yen to 363 yen and Pioneer Corp. closed unchanged at 217 yen.

Sharp Corp declined 15 yen or 4.8% to 300 yen. Panasonic Corp increased 7 yen to 517 yen.

Fanuc Corp. climbed 170 yen to 15,730 yen and Komatsu Ltd increased 12 yen to 2,139 yen. Hitachi Construction Machinery Co gained 9 yen to 1,777 yen.

Sumitomo Heavy added 5 yen to 405 yen.

FamilyMart Co Ltd, the convenience chain operator advanced 10 yen to 3,565 yen and Lawson increased 20 yen to 5,870 yen. Ito En Ltd gained 5 yen to 1,586 yen.

Seven & I Holdings Co jumped 10 yen to 2,416 yen.

Fast Retailing Co. advanced 100 yen to 21,270 yen and J. Front Retailing Co. Ltd surged 25 yen or 5.6% to 475 yen.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group added 2 yen to 451 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group decreased 5 yen to 3,080 yen. Nomura Holdings, Inc climbed 20 yen or 4.3% to 491 yen.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd jumped 11 yen or 4.5% to 256 yen and Nippon Yusen K.K. increased 4 yen to 200 yen.