Business News

TOKYO, (APP/AFP): Tokyo stocks rallied Wednesday
as a weaker yen boosted major exporters, offsetting below-par factory output data that had aggravated concerns about Japan’s stalled economy.
Fukushima operator Tokyo Electric Power, meanwhile, skyrocketed more than 11 percent on news that a powerful local leader who opposed the restart of one of its nuclear power plants would not seek to renew his term in office.
At the close, the benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.97 percent, or 162.04 points, to sit at 16,887.40, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares gained 1.27 percent, or 16.73 points, to 1,329.54.
Firms doing business overseas drew support from a dip in Japan’s currency, as the dollar rose to 103.11 yen from 103.02 in New York and 102.23 yen in Asia earlier Tuesday.
A weaker yen is a plus for Japan’s exporters as it boosts their overseas competitiveness and profitability.
“The yen has begun to fully price in the possibility of a US rate hike,” Chihiro Ohta, a senior strategist with SMBC Nikko Securities, told Bloomberg News.
“Investors were wary over what a 100-yen-per-dollar level would do to
corporate earnings, but with the yen near the 103 level, those concerns will be alleviated.”