Japanese Shares Rally to Start the Year

2026-01-05 00:57 By Jam Kaimo Samonte 1 min. read

The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 2.97% to close at a two-month high at 51,833, while the broader Topix Index climbed to a fresh all-time high at 3,476 on Monday as the Japanese market reopened for its first trading session of the year.

Technology stocks led the advance, with flash memory leader Kioxia Holdings soaring nearly 9%, followed by SoftBank Group (4.9%), Advantest (7.8%), and Tokyo Electron (7.6%).

Heavyweight financial and defense firms also rose, including Mitsubishi UFJ (2.1%), Sumitomo Mitsui (2.8%), and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (8.4%).

Investors remain bullish on Japanese equities, buoyed by expectations that the country’s tech sector will benefit from global advances in artificial intelligence and related technologies.

Markets also focused on policy support from Tokyo, as Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi advocated for substantial government spending.

Meanwhile, traders continued to assess the impact of the US attack on Venezuela over the weekend.



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