Japan’s Nikkei index jumped to a near 26-year-high on Tuesday morning, as foreign investors piled in on expectations of strong earnings from Japan Inc, while Wall Street’s strength underpinned sentiment.
The Nikkei share average opened lower but later gained as much as 1.0 per cent to 22,775.68 in morning trade, the highest level since January 1992, reports Reuters.
Traders said factory automation equipment makers such as Fanuc Corp and Keyence Corp have been snapped up on expectations of strong earnings, soaring 2.1 per cent and 2.9 per cent, respectively.
Inpex Corp jumped 3.6 per cent and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co soared 3.9 per cent after oil prices hit the highest since early July 2015 on Monday, before edging down during Asian trade on Tuesday.
Realtor Mitsubishi Estate Co jumped 4.0 per cent after the company raised its net profit outlook to 112 billion yen from 108 billion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2018.
Listed brokerage firms also gained, with Nomura Holdings surging 2.7 per cent and Daiwa Securities advancing 1.5 per cent.
The broader Topix rose 0.6 per cent to 1,802.85.