Nikkei at New 15-Year High, Yahoo Japan Soars 11%

Hiruki Nakamura
29 May, 2015
New York City

Nikkei index rewrites 15-year high for the eleventh day in a row and the yen edged lower as foreign investors increase exposure to Japanese stocks. Domestic auto demand in April declined 7.5%. Yahoo Japan soared 11% on its e-commerce plan in China with Alibaba.

[R]4:30 PM Tokyo – Nikkei index rewrites 15-year high for the eleventh day in a row and the yen edged lower as foreign investors increase exposure to Japanese stocks. Domestic auto demand in April declined 7.5%. Yahoo Japan soared 11% on its e-commerce plan in China with Alibaba.[/R]

Nikkei index extended rally to the eleventh day after stocks edged slightly higher and domestic auto sales declined in April.

Production volume in April declined 7.5% to 713,155 units compared to 770,591 units in the same month a year ago, the Japan Automobile Manufactures Association said today.

Domestic automobile demand plunged 7.5% to 319,482 units from a year ago month.

Total export in April increased 1.1% to 379,907 units but exports to Latin America surged 25.3%.

In April, production in passenger cars slumped 9.2% to 592,244 units but total trucks production jumped 1.1% to 108,825 units from a year ago month.

Domestic sales in passenger cars in the month plunged 10.1% to 263,376 units and total trucks sales slipped 6.6% to 55,168 units from a year ago month.

Motorcycle production in April tumbled 12% to 35,912 units while export plummeted 14% from a year ago month.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in April dropped 3.3% edged down from 3.4% in the previous month and the number of unemployed people in April jumped to 2.34 million from 2.28 million in March, the Ministry of Communications and Internal Affairs said.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 11.69 to 20,563.15 and the broader Topix index edged up 0.89 to 1,673.65.

For the week, Nikkei 225 jumped 1.5% and for the month climbed 2.6%.

The yen closed at 123.92 against a dollar, a low not seen since July 2007.

Stocks in Review

Nidec Corporation dropped 2.2% to 9,085 yen despite the electric motors maker’s chief executive officer said the company targeted revenues of 10 trillion yen by 2030.

Oki Electric Industry Co., Ltd slipped 1.1% to 258 yen after the automated equipment systems maker developed to detect drones and plans for security companies; selling price for standard model will be at 3.2 million yen.

Sanwa Holdings Corp gained 0.6% to 1,083 yen after the Nikkei news said shutters manufacturer plans to pay dividend of 20 yen per share for the year ending March, an increase of 4 yen from a year ago period.

Yahoo Japan Corporation surged 11.6% to 556 yen after the internet search services provider said its plans to team with Alibaba Group and enter China''s e-commerce market.