TOKYO
Japanese shares climbed on Tuesday for a third consecutive day, buoyed by gains in technology stocks and investor optimism over the government’s efforts to stabilise the debt markets.
The Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.9% while broader Topix was up 0.5%.
There were 171 advancers on the Nikkei index against 52 decliners.
Stocks advanced alongside Japanese government bonds (JGBs), which have been moving increasingly in tandem amid rising concerns over the country’s fiscal health and borrowing costs.
Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said the government will work to ensure confidence in the JGB market, a day after Reuters reported the finance ministry is considering buying back some super-long-dated bonds to contain rising yields.
“We see lower interest rates and a stable dollar-yen exchange rate as supporting the Japanese stock market today,” said Maki Sawada, an equities strategist at Nomura Securities.
Chip-sector suppliers Advantest and Shin-Etsu Chemical jumped 4% and 2.4%, respectively, following a nearly 2% surge in the Philadelphia SE semiconductor index overnight.
Shares of Mazda Motor rose 1.4% as the yen weakened to the 145 level against the dollar, providing a boost to exporters.
The top percentage gainer in the Nikkei was Sumitomo Pharma , which jumped 5.8%, followed by motor maker Nidec, up 4.8%.
Space startup ispace, which had a second moon lander crash into the lunar surface last week, saw its shares rebound 5.2% after they fell by their daily limit for two straight sessions.
