Japan's Nikkei rallies on Wall Street gains, softer yen; SoftBank jumps

J. FRONT RETAILING

27/12/2023 03:18

By Kevin Buckland
       TOKYO, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average
rallied broadly on Wednesday, as a softer yen buoyed exporter
shares and chip stocks tracked advances in U.S. peers overnight.
    Tech investor SoftBank Group  9984.T  was the Nikkei's top
gainer, adding 5.15% after exercising an option to receive
shares in telco T-Mobile US  TMUS.O  worth some $7.59 billion
for no additional cost.
    The Nikkei  .N225  entered the midday recess up 1.06% at
33,658.32, with 210 of its 225 components rising, versus just 11
that fell and four that were flat.
    The broader Topix  .TOPX  added 0.89%. Growth stocks
outperformed, with an Topix sub-index of the shares  TOPXG 
gaining 0.97% compared with a 0.82% rise for value stocks
 .TOPXV .
    There was only one loser among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33
industry groups: a 0.03% decline for rubber companies
 .IRUBR.T . Shippers  .ISHIP.T  led gains with a 3.18% surge.
    "Gains for heavyweight stocks should keep the Nikkei
supported throughout the day, but up around 33,700 the Nikkei is
likely to start feeling top heavy," said Nomura Securities
strategist Maki Sawada, pointing also to thin trading conditions
due to the holidays that could exacerbate price swings.
    The yen eased slightly to as weak as 142.83 per dollar
 JPY=EBS  on Wednesday, improving the outlook for exporters'
overseas profits. Toyota  7203.T  gained 1.12% and Sony  6758.T 
added 1.33%.
    Chip-related shares climbed after the Philadelphia SE
Semiconductor Index  .SOX  rallied 1.8% overnight. Tokyo
Electron  8035.T  rose 1.15% and Advantest  6857.T  gained
0.81%.
    At the other end, retailers continued recent weakness.
Department store operator J.Front Retailing  3086.T  was the
Nikkei's biggest percentage decliner with a 1.3% slide, despite
posting earnings after the bell on Tuesday that Nomura analyst
Hisahiro Yamaoka termed a "solid performance" with "no major
surprises".
    Peer Takashimaya  8233.T  slumped 0.67%.

 (Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
 ((Kevin.Buckland@thomsonreuters.com;))