Asian stock markets opened higher at the beginning of the week. On Tuesday, Japanese stocks rose to all-time highs with the yen rising against the dollar. The move higher came after the Bank of Japan reduced its government bonds purchases.
The BOJ trimmed the amount it bought in Japanese government bonds with 10 to 25 years left until they mature by 10 billion yen ($88.39 million) each. That raised speculation that the central bank could start tapering its stimulus.
Following the announcement, the US dollar fell to 112.62 against the yen from 113.09 yen on Monday. The Nikkei 225 index gained 0.6%, weakening after the yen’s jump. The Nikkei last reached such dizzying highs in November 1991.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong Hang Seng rose by 0.3%, Chinese Shanghai Composite and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.1% each, and South Korea’s KOSPI declined by 0.4% following a 2.9% fall in Samsung Electronics Co. Taiwan's TAIEX retreated from its 28-year high amid a 0.6% decline in Taiwan Semiconductor, which has a large weight in the index.
