TOKYO – Tokyo stocks opened higher today, tracking Wall Street gains in hopes of additional stimulus as Japan prepared to start its coronavirus vaccination campaign.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.17%, or 50.72 points, at 29,439.22 in early trade, while the broader Topix index gained 0.14%, or 2.73 points, to 1,926.68.
“Japanese shares are being seen supported by US gains,” said Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito.
Japan hopes to begin vaccinating selected healthcare workers against Covid-19 next week.
This is supporting the market along with hopes for further US economic stimulus and the positive effect of Japan’s own virus rescue package, analysts said.
SoftBank Group was down 0.32% at ¥1,414 on profit-taking after it said net profit rocketed to $11.1 billion in the third quarter, as stock rallies and asset sales helped solidify its recovery.
Renesas rallied 3.49% to ¥1,245 after it confirmed late Monday it will acquire its German-British competitor Dialog, a semiconductor specialist and Apple supplier, in a $5.9 billion deal.
The dollar fetched ¥105.23 in early Asian trade, against ¥105.22 in New York.
On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.8% at 31,385.76. – AFP, February 9, 2021
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