Japanese Market Notably Higher

(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market is notably higher on Thursday, extending the gains in the previous three sessions, with the Nikkei 225 moving above the 32,500 level, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight, boosted by gains in index heavyweights and technology stocks.

Traders were reacting to domestic data showing retail sales grew more than expected, while industrial production declined more than anticipated in July.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is up 184.86 points or 0.57 percent to 32,518.32, after touching a high of 32,534.85 earlier. Japanese stocks closed modestly higher on Wednesday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is edging down 0.2 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is gaining almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is gaining more than 2 percent and Honda is adding more than 1 percent.

In the tech space, Advantest is gaining almost 2 percent and Tokyo Electron is adding more than 1 percent, while Screen Holdings is flat.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is edging down 0.2 percent and Mizuho Financial is also edging down 0.4 percent, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is flat.

Among the major exporters, Canon and Panasonic are edging up 0.2 to 0.4 percent each, while Mitsubishi Electric is edging down 0.4 percent and Sony is declining almost 1 percent.

Among other major gainers, Odakyu Electric Railway is gaining almost 4 percent and Tobu Railway is adding almost 3 percent.

Conversely, Sumitomo Pharma is losing almost 4 percent and Matsui Securities is declining almost 3 percent.

In economic news, the total value of retail sales in Japan was up 6.8 percent on year in July, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry or METI, said on Thursday - coming in at 13.924 trillion yen. That beat forecasts for an increase of 5.4 percent following the downwardly revised 5.6 percent gain in June (originally 5.9 percent). On a monthly basis, retail sales advanced 2.1 percent after slipping 0.6 percent in June.

The METI also said Industrial output in Japan was down a seasonally adjusted 2.0 percent on month in July. That missed forecasts for a fall of 1.4 percent following the 2.4 percent increase in June. On a yearly basis, industrial production was down 2.5 percent following the flat reading in the previous month.

Upon the release of the data, the METI downgraded its assessment of industrial production, saying that it fluctuates indecisively. According to the METI's forecast of industrial production, output is expected to rise 2.6 percent in August and 2.4 percent in September.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 145 yen-range on Thursday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved moderately higher during trading on Wednesday extending the upward trend seen in recent sessions.

The major averages all moved to the upside, closing higher for the fourth consecutive session. The Nasdaq climbed 75.55 points or 0.5 percent to 14,019.31, the S&P 500 rose 17.24 points or 0.4 percent to 4,514.87 and the Dow inched up 37.57 points or 0.1 percent to 34,890.24.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index inched up 0.1 percent, the French CAC 40 Index edged down 0.1 and the German DAX Index dipped 0.2 percent.

Crude oil prices climbed higher Wednesday after data showed a big drop in U.S. crude inventories last week. The dollar's continued weakness and the impact of Hurricane Idalia on oil fields along Florida's Gulf Coast also supported prices. West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for October rose $0.47 or 0.6 percent at $81.63 a barrel.