Japanese Market Sharply Higher

(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market is sharply higher on Monday, extending the gains in the previous two sessions, with the Nikkei 225 moving above the 31,300 level to fresh 33-year highs, following the broadly positive cues from global markets on Friday, with gains across all sectors as traders react to the news of an "agreement in principle" reached on the US debt ceiling over the weekend.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is up 405.75 or 1.31 percent at 31,322.06, after touching a high of 30,560.43 earlier. Japanese shares ended notably higher on Friday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 3 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is adding almost 1 percent. Among automakers, Honda is gaining more than 2 percent, while Toyota is flat.

In the tech space, Screen Holdings is gaining almost 2 percent, Advantest is surging more than 5 percent and Tokyo Electron is adding more than 2 percent. In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is adding more than 2 percent, while Mizuho Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are gaining almost 2 percent each.

The major exporters are mostly higher. Canon is gaining almost 2 percent, Mitsubishi Electric is adding more than 2 percent and Sony is up almost 1 percent. Panasonic is flat.

Among the other major gainers, Sumitomo, Mitsui & Co., Marubeni, Nikon, Renesas Electronics and Mitsubishi are gaining more than 4 percent each, while Itochu, Shin-Etsu Chemical, Sojitz and Toyota Tsusho are adding almost 4 percent each. Nippon Yusen K.K., Kikkoman, Citizen Watch and TDK are advancing more than 3 percent each.

Conversely, there are no major losers.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the mid-140 yen-range on Monday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved sharply higher over the course of the trading day on Friday, extending the rebound seen during Thursday's session. With the continued upward move, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 reached their best closing levels in nine months.

The major averages moved roughly sideways going into the close, holding on to strong gains. The Nasdaq spiked 277.59 points or 2.2 percent to 12,975.69, the S&P 500 surged 54.17 points or 1.3 percent to 4,205.45 and the Dow jumped 328.69 points or 1.0 percent to 33,093.34.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index advanced by 0.7 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both jumped by 1.2 percent.

Crude oil prices climbed higher on Friday after Russia played down the prospect of additional output cuts by OPEC. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July ended higher by $0.84 or 1.2 percent at $72.67 a barrel. WTI crude futures gained about 1.6 percent last week.