TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei share average climbed to an all-time high on Friday, posting its biggest monthly gain in three decades, as tech stocks rallied following strong sales forecasts from Amazon and Apple.
A weaker yen also boosted heavyweight exporters, following its slide to a record low against the euro and the lowest level since February versus the dollar on Thursday after the Bank of Japan governor kept a cautious tone in holding interest rates steady.
The Nikkei closed up 2.1 percent at the session high of 52,411.34, a record peak that took the index’s gains for October to 16.6 percent - the biggest since January of 1994.
The broader Topix rose as much as 1.4 percent to reach an all-time peak of 3,348.06, before ending the day with a 0.9 percent gain at a record closing high of 3,331.83. On Thursday, Amazon reported its cloud revenue rose at the fastest clip in nearly three years, helping the company to forecast quarterly sales above estimates.