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Tokyo stocks gain on dollar's firmness in 104 yen zone(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Tokyo stocks gained in Monday trading as the U.S. dollar's strength in the lower 104 yen zone provided a positive tone for exporter shares. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 74.06 points, or 0.48 percent, from Friday at 15,613.25. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 5.24 points, or 0.41 percent, higher at 1,291.31. Stocks traded on a solid note in line with the dollar's firmness against the yen at seven-month high levels. "The market was underpinned by dollar-yen trading," said Ayako Terada of Nomura Securities Co.'s investment research department. A weaker yen expands overseas earnings of export-oriented firms, including high-tech and automotive ones, when repatriated. Yamaha Motor jumped 71 yen, or 3.8 percent, to 1,958 yen, Casio Computer grew 71 yen, or 3.9 percent, to 1,880 yen and Yaskawa Electric climbed 40 yen, or 3.0 percent, to 1,374 yen. Despite the gains in some export-oriented shares, "a lack of energy in the overall market pressured the topside" of the key indexes, said Toshikazu Horiuchi, equity strategist at IwaiCosmo Securities Co. Trading was thin. Volume on the main section decreased to 1.56 billion shares from 1.76 billion shares on Friday. The planned meeting between Russian and Ukrainian leaders in Belarus on Tuesday amid a conflict in eastern Ukraine has been a reason for market participants to hold back from active trading, Horiuchi added. Rising issues outnumbered falling ones by 1,162 to 499 on the First Section, while 157 closed unchanged. Mining became one of the best performing sectors, with Japan Petroleum Exploration advancing 165 yen, or 4.3 percent, to 4,025 yen and Inpex up 13.50 yen, or 0.9 percent, to 1,506.00 yen. Other major gainers included construction, chemical and marine transport shares. Itoham Foods rallied 28 yen, or 5.9 percent, to 504 yen in response to its announcement on Friday that the ham and sausage processor will buy back up to 4.6 percent of its outstanding shares. Murata Manufacturing went up 80 yen, or 0.8 percent, to 10,075 yen in response to the company's announcement that it will buy U.S. wireless device parts maker Peregrine Semiconductor Corp., with a view to strengthening its production of smartphone parts. By contrast, Chugai Pharmaceutical plummeted 335 yen, or 9.2 percent, to 3,325 yen on a report that Swiss pharmaceutical firm Roche Holding AG, which has a roughly 60 percent stake in Chugai, decided against bidding for the remaining 40 percent of the Japanese drugmaker. Chugai soared earlier this month on a media report that Roche was in negotiations to make Chugai a wholly owned subsidiary. (c) 2014 Kyodo News |