Nikkei Index In Tokyo Soars 2% After Tech Stocks Rebound

Akira Ito
24 Apr, 2024
Tokyo

Indexes in Tokyo led the gainers in Asia with a rise of 2%, and markets in Seoul and Hong Kong jumped around 1.5%, tracking gains in overnight trading in New York. 

Benchmark indexes in Tokyo advanced for the third session in a row following a sharp rise in tech stocks in overnight trading in New York. 

In New York, stocks advanced for the second day in a row following positive earnings from General Motors, GE Aerospace, UPS, and PepsiCo. 

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average soared 2.3% to 38,425.64, and the Topix index jumped 1.7% to 2,710.69. 

In addition, investors are looking forward to the Bank of Japan's rate decisions on Friday amid persistent weakness in the Japanese yen. 

The Japanese yen traded at a new 34-year low against the U.S. dollar and hovered at 154.82 at 11:30 a.m. local Tokyo time. 

The Japanese yen has lost 50% of its value against the U.S. dollar since December 15, 2020. 

Tech stocks led the gainers in Tokyo, and Tokyo Electron, Advantest, Socionext, Disco Corp., and Lasertec advanced between 3% and 8%. 

Nidec Corp. plunged as much as 3% before recovering to a gain of 0.5% to ¥6,779.0 after the maker of small electric motors announced a surprise loss in its latest quarter. 

The company is battling intense price pressure as price competition heats up in the electric vehicle market in China. 

Asahi Kasei Corp. decreased 1% to ¥1,088.0, and the company said it plans to build a $1.3 billion battery component plant in Canada, according to Nikkei News. 

The company plans to invest about 200 billion yen, or about $1.3 billion, with a target to start production in 2027 and supply mainly Honda's electric vehicle plant in the nation. 

Asahi plans to make lithium-ion battery separators, a key component in electric vehicle batteries.