TOKYO: Japanese shares surged on Monday, with both Nikkei and Topix hitting 30-year highs, as strong corporate earnings lifted investor confidence for an economic recovery from pandemic lows.
The Nikkei share average jumped 2.12% to 29,388.50, the highest level since August 1990, while the broader Topix rose 1.75% to 1,923.95, the highest since June 1991.
That sent the total market value of companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s main board to a record high of 712 trillion yen ($6.75 trillion), according to the exchange.
At home, Kobe Steel surged 17.47% to lead gains on Nikkei after raising its full-year outlook, while Nippon Steel jumped 10.04% after trimming its annual net loss forecast. JFE Holdings rose 6.57%.
Toyota Motor gained 1.45% ahead of its earnings report on Tuesday.
Railway shares continued to gain, with Odakyu Electric Railway jumping 3.79%, Keio rising 3.88% and East Japan Railway gaining 4.85%. The stocks that gained the most among the top 30 core Topix names were SoftBank Group, up 4.45 %, followed by Daikin Industries, which rose 4.38%.
The underperformers among the Topix 30 were Sony, down 2.85%, followed by Takeda Pharmaceutical, which fell 0.76%.
“With the vaccine rollouts and the fall in the number of daily COVID-19 infections, expectations for normalization of the economy is rising,” said Soichiro Matsumoto, chief investment officer Japan at Credit Suisse Private Banking. “Better-than-expected corporate performance in this environment is also lifting sentiment. Many US firms have reported upbeat results and Japanese companies, particularly those sensitive to overseas demand, are following suit.”
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