TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rose 0.65 percent on Thursday morning thanks to a weaker yen, with the benchmark Nikkei index approaching the psychologically important 20,000 level last seen in 2000.
The Nikkei 225 added 127.66 points to 19,917.47 by the break while the Topix index of all first-section issues gained 0.25 percent, or 3.96 points, to 1,592.43.
The dollar held steady after rising on the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s last policy meeting that showed a split over the timing of an interest-rate increase.
Differences of views within the Fed countered an earlier market conviction that a June hike was now off the table.
Given the expectations for the Fed to lift rates this year, “the trend for Japanese and European stocks to outperform the US will continue,” Ichiyoshi Asset Management executive officer Mitsushige Akino told Bloomberg News.
