Tokyo stocks rise in morning trading
By DPA, IANSWednesday, November 17, 2010
TOKYO - Japanese shares rose in Thursday morning trading supported by banking issues and the yen’s stability.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 59.85 points, or 0.61 percent, to trade at 9,871.51. The broader Topix index was up 6.57 points, or 0.77 percent, at 856.87.
The Nikkei briefly rose above 9,900 led by the banking and insurance sectors as the Japanese currency’s recent retreat against the dollar kept boosting investor sentiment. The yen was hovering around the lower-83-yen range to the dollar.
At the beginning of November, the Japanese currency had been moving around the lower-80 yen range, edging closer to its all-time high — 79.75 yen to the dollar marked April 19, 1995.
On currency markets at 9 a.m. (0000 GMT), the dollar traded at 83.15-16 yen, down from Wednesday’s 5 p.m. quote of 83.41-43 yen.
The euro traded at 1.3553-3554 dollars, up from 1.3482-1.3484 dollars Wednesday, and at 112.68-71 yen, up from 112.46-50 yen.
A weaker yen makes Japanese goods more competitive abroad and improves overseas earnings when the revenues are repatriated.
