The Japanese stock market opened sharply higher on Monday, recovering from losses incurred in the previous session. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 has now surpassed the 39,200 mark, reflecting mixed signals from Wall Street on Friday. Gains were observed across most sectors, led by significant index heavyweights and financial stocks.
The Nikkei 225 Index increased by 503.49 points or 1.30% to reach 39,290.87, after hitting a high of 39,437.16 earlier in the session. Japanese equities experienced a slight decline last Friday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group remained static, while Fast Retailing, which operates Uniqlo, saw an increase of more than 2%. Within the automotive sector, Honda gained over 2%, and Toyota saw an increase of nearly 1%.
In the technology sector, Screen Holdings experienced a gain of almost 1%, while Tokyo Electron and Advantest both rose by more than 1%.
In banking, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial increased by 1.5%, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Mizuho Financial adding more than 1% and over 2%, respectively.
Key exporters also showed positive performance. Canon increased by nearly 2%, Mitsubishi Electric added almost 1%, Sony slightly rose by 0.5%, and Panasonic advanced by more than 2%.
Among notable gainers, Sumitomo Metal Mining soared over 7%, while Mitsubishi Materials and Socionext surged nearly 7% each. Taisei and Shin-Etsu Chemical gained almost 6% each, and ENEOS Holdings rose by nearly 5%. Additionally, Mitsui Mining & Smelting, Minebea Mitsumi, Fujikura, Yamaha Motor, Japan Steel Works, and Inpex all saw increases of more than 4%, with Sumitomo Chemical, NTT Data, and Idemitsu Kosan advancing around 4%.
Conversely, there were no major losers to report.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar was trading in the higher 155 yen range on Monday.
On Wall Street, stocks exhibited a lack of clear direction on Friday, following a modest decline in the previous session. The major averages oscillated around the unchanged line before closing with mixed results.
Despite the market's volatility, the Dow closed above 40,000 for the first time, rising 134.21 points or 0.3% to 40,003.59. The S&P 500 incrementally increased by 6.17 points or 0.1% to 5,303.27, while the Nasdaq, which is tech-heavy, slightly decreased by 12.35 points or 0.1% to 16,685.97.
In Europe, major markets moved downward. The French CAC 40 Index declined by 0.3%, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index dipped by 0.2%, and the German DAX Index edged down by 0.1%.
Crude oil prices rose on Friday amid signs of easing inflation, a drop in inventory data, and optimism over potential interest rate cuts. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude oil futures for June climbed to $80.06 a barrel, gaining $0.79 or over 1%. WTI crude futures saw a weekly gain of 2.3%.
