The Nikkei 225 Index Closes 2.31% Higher

The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 2.28% to close at 57,650 while the broader Topix Index gained 1.9% to 3,855 on Tuesday, with Japanese shares scaling fresh record highs, buoyed by expectations that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s decisive election victory will allow her to push through higher spending and tax cuts. Markets also gave her the benefit of the doubt after she said the stimulus measures would not further strain Japan’s public finances. Tech investing giant SoftBank Group surged 10.7% on renewed optimism around artificial intelligence and ahead of the company’s earnings on Thursday. Other tech and AI-related shares followed suit, including Fujikura (5%), Disco Corp (4.4%), Advantrest (1.2%) and Tokyo Electron (2.2%). Elsewhere, cable maker Furukawa Electric soared 22.9% on strong earnings, while IT services firm NEC jumped 7.3% after announcing a share buyback program. Japanese markets will be closed on Wednesday for a holiday.

The Nikkei 225 Index went up by 1301 points or 2.31 percent on Tuesday to close at 57665 points. The rise was led by Furukawa Electric (22.83%), Furukawa (19.27%) and Nissan Chemical (13.95%).

The Nikkei 225 Index rose 1.6% to above 57,200 while the broader Topix Index gained 1.4% to 3,836 on Tuesday, with Japanese shares scaling fresh record highs following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s decisive win in Sunday’s general election. The landslide victory gave her a solid mandate to push for increased spending and tax cuts, renewing her pledge to suspend the 8% sales tax on food for two years on Monday. Markets also gave her the benefit of the doubt after she said the stimulus measures would not further strain Japan’s public finances. Technology and AI-related stocks led the advance, tracking gains on Wall Street. Notable outperformers included Fujikura, up 8%, Kioxia Holdings, up 2.1%, SoftBank Group, up 6.9%, Tokyo Electron, up 2.7%, and Disco Corp, up 2.4%. Heavyweight defense, financial and consumer stocks also posted solid gains on optimism over higher defense spending and a broader lift to economic activity.