TOKYO: Tokyo shares rallied more than five percent Friday, tracking gains in US and European markets on hopes for fresh European and Japanese central bank stimulus. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange surged 5.38 percent, or 862.34 points, to 16,879.60 in mid-afternoon trade, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares also gained 5.05 percent, or 65.71 points, to 1,367.20.
After suffering a series of heavy losses since the start of the year, investors globally were cheered by a pledge from the head of the European Central Bank that he was ready to further ease monetary policy. That was followed Friday by a report in the respected Nikkei business daily that the Bank of Japan was also considering plans for more of economy-boosting measures as consumer prices are hammered by crashing oil prices.
“With further hopes for policy coordination among the central banks, the market will be supported,” Nomura Holdings senior strategist Juichi Wako told Bloomberg News. “Things will still be volatile, but we’ll generally be rising.” The gains come after a tumultuous start to 2016 that has wiped 20 percent off the Nikkei, putting it at a 15-month low and officially in bear market territory.
