TOKYO – Tokyo stocks opened higher today supported by rallies on Wall Street with investors eyeing the pandemic’s impact on the global economy.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.26%, or 76.15 points, at 29,433.97 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was up 0.27%, or 5.23 points, at 1,938.28.
“Japanese shares are seen supported by rallies on Wall Street in early trade but there’s no clear sense of direction,” said Okasan Online Securities in a note.
Investors were weighing factors including the impact of the coronavirus on the Indian economy and on the US labour market where vaccinations are allowing the economy to resume activity, it added.
On Friday, major Wall Street indices finished at fresh records after disappointing US jobs data fuelled confidence in continued fiscal and monetary support as the economy recovers from Covid-19.
The dollar fetched ¥108.57 (RM4.09) in early Asian trade, against ¥108.58 in New York late Friday.
Japan Airlines was up 0.69% at ¥2,340 after it posted an annual net loss of US$2.6 billion, without releasing a forecast for the current financial year, citing uncertainty around the pandemic.
Olympus was up 0.51% at ¥2,283.5 after it forecast an operating profit of ¥126 billion (US$1.2 billion) for the current fiscal year, slightly higher than analyst estimates of ¥123.3 billion.
Trading house Itochu was up 0.74% at ¥3,532 and Mitsubishi Heavy was up 2.27% at ¥3,418 ahead of their earnings reports due during trading hours later in the day.
Shipping firm Kawasaki Kisen was down 1.04% at ¥3,345 and its rival Nippon Yusen was down 0.55% at ¥4,535 ahead of their earnings reports also expected during today’s trading hours.
Panasonic was up 1.73% at ¥1,291 ahead of its earnings release, due after the closing bell.
On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.7% at 34,777.76. – AFP, May 10, 2021
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