SINGAPORE: Japan’s Nikkei share average touched a four-month high on Wednesday, boosted by a weaker yen even as investors kept a wary eye on the rapidly escalating conflict between Israel and Iran.
The Nikkei ended the day up 0.9% at the session’s high of 38,885.15, a level last seen on February 20. The broader Topix rose 0.8%.
The biggest boost to the Nikkei came from Uniqlo-brand owner Fast Retailing, chip-testing equipment maker Advantest and Switch-maker Nintendo, which rose 2%, 1.2% and 6.6%, respectively.
“Japan remains one of our favoured equity markets,” said Ben Powell, chief APAC investment strategist at the BlackRock Investment Institute.
“Ongoing shareholder-friendly reforms to boost profitability support our tactical overweight on Japanese stocks,” he said. “We prefer unhedged equity exposures, given the yen’s tendency to strengthen during periods of market stress.”
The Nikkei steadily extended its advance as the day progressed despite heightened worries among market participants over the potential for a more direct US military involvement in the Middle East.
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