TOKYO: Tokyo stocks jumped 2.4 percent at the open on Friday after strong US economic data sent Wall Street flying and extended a global rally that saw a surge in Chinese equities.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 445.58 points to 19,020.02, a few minutes after the opening bell.
Tokyo’s rise came after the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.27 percent Thursday, after the Commerce Department reported that the US economy grew at an annual rate of 3.7 percent in the second quarter, much higher than the 2.3 percent initially estimated.
“Amid concerns over the outlook of the global economy, the sound US GDP growth is supporting the market,” Nobuyuki Fujimoto, senior market analyst at SBI Securities, told Bloomberg News.
Global oil prices surged more than 10 percent Thursday after the strong US figures lifted confidence about the world’s biggest economy and petroleum user.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for delivery in October jumped $3.96 to $42.56 a barrel.
Shortly before the open Friday, official data showed that Japanese inflation fell back to zero in July while household spending dropped again, boosting speculation the central bank would fire more stimulus, and putting pressure on the yen.
On currency markets, the dollar rose to 121.07 yen, from 121.02 yen in New York where it firmed against other major currencies on the revised GDP figures.
The euro ticked up to $1.1243 and 136.11 yen, against $1.1239 and 136.03 yen.
