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Japan’s Nikkei index recovered on Monday from its lowest levels in a month recorded last week, supported by the yen’s decline from a four-month peak and Wall Street rising on increasing bets on the US economy reaching safety.
The Nikkei index ended Monday’s trading up 1.5 percent at 32,791.80 points after a rising wave that saw 196 stocks rise out of a total of 225 on the index, compared to 25 declines and four stability.
The broader Topix index also increased 1.47 percent.
The Nikkei’s gains on Monday came after its worst weekly performance since mid-September, which included a 3.4 percent drop on Thursday and Friday amid a stronger yen. The rise in the yen reduces the value of exporters’ sales abroad.
“The rise is very broad, (but) we can clearly see that a large part of it is a natural recovery after the sharp declines seen last week… This is probably the biggest factor,” said Maki Sawada, a strategist at Nomura Securities.
US stocks, especially shares of advanced technology companies, rose on Friday after the release of strong monthly jobs data that reinforced speculation that the economy would survive the recession.
Tokyo Electron chip manufacturing equipment shares were the largest supporter of the Nikkei index, after it rose 76 points, or 3.44 percent.
The yen fell to 145.615 yen to the dollar on Monday, compared to 141.60 late last week.
Energy stocks were the best performers after the rise in crude oil prices, and the sub-index for stocks in this sector on the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 3.22 percent.
