Japan's Nikkei hits 34-year high on Wall Street record, dovish BOJ

Lasertec

23/01/2024 06:32

(Updates with closing prices)
    By Kevin Buckland
       TOKYO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average
rose to a 34-year peak on Tuesday, buoyed by Wall Street's climb
overnight to a fresh record high and the Bank of Japan's (BOJ)
decision to keep ultra-easy policy settings intact.
    The Nikkei  .N225  rallied as much as 1.2% to 36,984.51, a
level not seen since February 1990, before a wave of selling as
traders locked in gains following a world-beating surge so far
this year. 
        Japan's benchmark index closed 0.08% lower at 36,517.57,
putting its gains for 2024 at 9.12%. It stands head and
shoulders above major global peers, many of which are negative
for the year.
    "People are just taking profits," and the uptrend remains
intact, said Shoki Omori, chief Japan desk strategist at Mizuho
Securities.
    The BOJ's easy monetary policy will support the stock
market, taking the Nikkei to 38,000 in coming months, Omori
added.
        Japan's central bank left its short-term interest rate
target at -0.1% and that for the 10-year bond yield around 0%,
as widely expected. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda will hold a news
conference from around 0630 GMT.
    Technical indicators have been flashing red, and analysts
have been warning daily that a Nikkei pullback is likely. The
relative strength index (RSI) still stands at 75.7, well above
the 70 line that signals overbought conditions.
    Several heavyweight Nikkei stocks that had posted gains
early in the session slumped by the close.
        Chip-sector giant Tokyo Electron  8035.T  rose more than
1% at one point but closed down 1.74% at a session low.
Advantest  6857.T  rose 1.84% to scale a new record high but
finished down 1.5%.
  
        AI-focused startup investor SoftBank Group  9984.T 
climbed 1.22% to touch a four-month top before ending with a
0.31% loss. Sony Group  6758.T  added 0.78% to reach a two-year
high before sliding 0.71%.
  

 (Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Savio D'Souza, Mrigank
Dhaniwala and Eileen Soreng)
 ((Kevin.Buckland@thomsonreuters.com;))