TOKYO: Japanese stocks rose for a sixth day after the nation’s central bank maintained record monetary stimulus. Energy shares led gains as crude oil extended its rally from the highest close in more than a month.
Oil explorer Inpex Corp. surged 7.2 percent, while airlines fell the most among the 33 industry groups on the Topix index on prospects for higher fuel costs. Ryohin Keikaku Co., which operates the Muji brand, lost 6.9 percent after analysts said the company’s earnings report was slightly negative. Seibu Holdings Inc., operator of Japan’s biggest hotel chain, plunged 5.1 percent as trading volume surged.
The Topix climbed 1.2 percent to 1,493.17 in Tokyo to close at its highest level since Sept. 9 and cap its longest winning streak since August. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.8 percent to 18,322.98. The yen strengthened 0.2 percent to 119.97 per dollar after Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and his board decided to keep increasing the monetary base at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen ($660 billion), as predicted by 34 of 36 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg last week.
“Expectations for further easing are deeply entrenched, leading us to a sixth consecutive day of gains,” said Naoki Fujiwara, chief fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management Co. in Tokyo. Immediately after the BOJ meeting “we saw a sharp rise in the yen, but after that ended we’re seeing buying.”
