Tokyo shares close higher

TOKYO (AFP): Tokyo shares ended a three-day losing streak to close higher on Monday, with bargain-hunting supporting the market.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.37 percent, or 114.88 points, to end at 31,565.64, while the broader Topix index added 0.19 percent, or 4.20 points, to 2,241.49.

“The Japanese market rebounded after falling for three straight days, helped by a positive reaction to a pause in the rise of the US interest rates,” Iwai Cosmo Securities said in a note.

Looking ahead, US-based chip giant Nvidia’s earnings on Wednesday will be a key marker for equities, as will a speech by US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell, National Australia Bank senior analyst Tapas Strickland said in a note.

Strickland added “markets will still be fixated” on news on China, where authorities are struggling to get a grip on the economy as its post-Covid recovery falters.
In Tokyo trading, TEPCO, which operates the Fukushima nuclear power plant, jumped 4.15 percent to 607 yen.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was scheduled to meet the head of the national fisheries co-op federation later in the day, before the mooted release of treated water from the nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean.

Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing rose 1.31 percent to 33,070 yen, while SoftBank Group climbed 1.15 percent to 6,568 yen.

Drug maker Eisai advanced 1.11 percent to 9,345 yen as reports said its Alzheimer’s treatment jointly developed by Biogen would be discussed at a health ministry panel on Monday.

The dollar fetched 145.43 yen, against 145.32 yen in New York on Friday.