TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei share gauge climbed for a fourth straight session on Wednesday after a tentative trade truce between the US and China supported demand for higher-yielding assets. The Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.6% and logged its longest winning streak in about a month. Year-to-date, it is down 4.2%. The broader Topix gauge rose about 0.1%.
Chip-sector heavyweights Sumco and Tokyo Electron surged 11% and 4.8%, respectively, on optimism that a US-China agreement will lead to the lifting of Chinese export curbs on rare earth minerals critical to high-tech sectors.
Sumco was the biggest gainer on the Nikkei, followed by Socionext, which gained 6.3%. Mazda Motor climbed 1.2% as the yen weakened, boosting exporters’ shares.
The biggest loser on the Nikkei was Hino Motors, which slid 18% to log its steepest daily percentage decline since October 2023.