Japan's Nikkei advances as chip shares gain
15/06/2023 04:16
TOKYO, June 15 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average
traded higher on Thursday led by gains in heavyweight chip
related stocks, with investor sentiment staying broadly positive
on strong appetite from foreign investors.
The Nikkei index .N225 gained 0.34% to 33,615.57 by the
midday break, after opening lower.
The broader Topic .TOPX rose 0.45% to 2,304.87.
Chip-related shares supported the Nikkei the most, with
Advantest 6857.T and Tokyo Electron 8035.T rising 3.54% and
1.31%, respectively. Screen Holdings 7735.T rose 2.61% and
Nikon 7731.T jumped 4.52% to become the top gainer on the
Nikkei.
Screen Holdings lost 2.5% in the previous session while
Advantest and Tokyo Electron ended flat.
The Nikkei index jumped in the previous session to its
highest level since March 1990. The index has so far risen
nearly 9% for the month, setting to post its biggest monthly
gains since November 2020.
"Investors sold shares that gained in the previous session,
and bought those which fell," said Kentaro Hayashi, senior
strategist at Daiwa Securities.
"Today's move suggested that investors took a pause in
active buying. But the outlook remains positive as foreigners
are still buying. The Nikkei could rise further after the
recess."
Foreign investors became net buyers of Japanese stocks for
the 11th straight week, buying 1.3 trillion yen ($9.22
billion)worth of shares in the week ended June 10, more than
twice the previous weeks' 600 billion yen, according to data
from the Ministry of Finance released on Thursday.
Toyota Motor 7203.T rose 0.84% after jumping more than 6%
in the previous session. The automaker has risen more than 13%
so far this week, outperforming the Topix index's 3.57% weekly
gain.
Brokerages .ISECU.T rose 3.3% to become the top performing
sector among the 33 industry subindexes on the Tokyo Stock
Exchange. The shipping sector .ISHIP.T rose 2.33%.
Uniqlo brand owner Fast Retailing 9983.T lost 1.14% to
weigh on the Nikkei the most. SoftBank Group 9984.T slipped
0.56%.
Drug makers fell, with Daiichi Sankyo 4568.T and Eisai
4523.T losing 3.24% and 1.14%, respectively, pushing the drug
sector index .IPHAM.T down 1.3% to make it the worst
performer.
($1 = 141.0000 yen)
(Reporting by Junko Fujita; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)
((junko.fujita@thomsonreuters.com;))