Japanese Stocks Closed Higher on Strong US Jobs Data

Japanese stocks closed higher on Monday, April 5, as strong employment data in the United States reinforced optimism about the recovery of the world’s largest economy, prompting investors to buy index-heavy stocks such as Softbank Group and Fast Retailing, in addition to shares of companies linked to the chip industry.

The benchmark Nikkei index rose 0.82% to close at 30,089.25 points, reaching the 30,000-point barrier for the first time in more than two weeks. The broader Topix index advanced 0.6% to 1983.54 points.

The US Labor Department said the number of jobs in non-farm sectors increased by 916,000 last month, the largest increase since last August. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast a 647,000 increase in jobs in March.