Japanese Market Significantly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Japanese stock market is trading significantly higher on Tuesday, extending the gains in the previous three sessions, despite the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving above the 44,100 level to record all-time highs, after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced his resignation, with gains across most sectors led by exporters and technology stocks.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is up 477.62 points or 1.09 percent at 44,121.43, after touching a record all-time high of 44,185.73 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply higher on Monday.

Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is losing more than 1 percent and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is flat. Among automakers, Honda is gaining 1.5 percent and Toyota is edging up 0.4 percent.

In the tech space, Screen Holdings is climbing more than 6 percent, Advantest is surging more than 7 percent and Tokyo Electron is adding 3.5 percent.

In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is gaining almost 1 percent and Mizuho Financial is edging up 0.1 percent, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging down 0.1 percent.

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

Among the other major gainers, Tokuyama and Kanadevia are surging more than 5 percent each, while IHI is gaining more than 4 percent. Kawasaki Heavy Industries is adding almost 4 percent, while OKUMA, Renesas Electronics and Japan Airlines are aadvancing almost 3 percent each.

Conversely, Citizen Watch is tumbling more than 5 percent.

In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 147 yen-range on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, stocks moved moderately higher during trading on Monday, regaining ground after ending last Friday's session well off their worst levels but still mostly lower. With the upward move, the tech-heavy Nasdaq reached a new record closing high.

The major averages all ended the day in positive territory. The Nasdaq climbed 98.31 points or 0.5 percent to 21,978.70, the Dow increased 114.09 points or 0.3 percent to 45,514.95 and the S&P 500 rose 13.65 points or 0.2 percent to 6,495.15.

The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.9 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index inched up by 0.1 percent.

Crude oil prices moved higher Monday on the threat of sanctions hanging over Russia on its oil exports, although the upside was limited by OPEC's decision Sunday to increase output. West Texas Intermediate crude for October delivery was up $0.53 or 0.86 percent at $62.40 per barrel.