The Nikkei index closed at its highest level in three weeks on Wednesday as investors returned to buy stocks that had dropped in price, buoyed by a rise overnight in Wall Street that lifted market sentiment. The Nikkei ended the session up 0.33% at 32,333.46 points, marking the highest level since August 10, following continuous gains for the third consecutive session. The broader Topix index rose by 0.43% to 2,313.38 points. Wall Street closed sharply higher overnight after a drop in the monthly new job count solidified expectations for the Federal Reserve to pause interest rate hikes.
Tokyo Electron, a manufacturer of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, saw its stock rise by 0.97%, providing the largest support to the Nikkei. Advantest, a manufacturer of semiconductor testing equipment, also increased by 0.7%, while Kyocera, a manufacturer of electronic components, rose by 2.33%. The banking sector climbed by 1.41%, making it the best-performing sub-sector among the 33 sub-sectors on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Toyota Motor's stock gained 1.03% after the world’s largest automaker by sales announced it would resume operations at its assembly plants in Japan on Wednesday following a disruption in one of its production systems that halted domestic production. However, the performance of retail stocks was weak, with shares of multi-department store operators declining. Takashimaya’s stock dropped by 1.49%, marking the worst performance in the Nikkei. Additionally, Seven & I, which operates food stores, lost 1.6%, and Fast Retailing, owner of the Uniqlo brand, fell by 0.63%, putting the most pressure on the Nikkei.
