Tokyo shares close higher on massive US stimulus

TOKYO — Tokyo stocks closed higher on Friday, extending rallies on Wall Street after the US Federal Reserve unveiled another round of massive stimulus.

      The Nikkei 225 index rose 0.79 per cent, or 152.73 points, to 19,498.50 while the broader Topix index gained 0.92 per cent, or 13.06 points, to 1,430.04.

      The Nikkei opened higher, taking a positive lead from Wall Street, where stocks advanced after the Federal Reserve unveiled new stimulus that offset news of another huge spike in jobless claims.

      "Sentiment was backed by the Fed's easing in the morning and the Bank of Japan's ETF (exchange traded funds) in the afternoon," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

      "But active buying can't be seen as investors remain nervous about the increasing number of virus infections in Japan," Horiuchi told AFP.

      The dollar fetched 108.37 yen in Asian afternoon trade, against 108.47 yen in New York.

      Mutsumi Kagawa, chief global strategist at Rakuten Securities, said the market remains in a "tug-of-war between those who are pessimistic (about the virus pandemic) and those who are optimistic,... who think they don't want to miss a rare chance to buy" shares at cheap prices.

      In Tokyo, Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing rallied 2.64 per cent to 48,190 yen despite its announcement revising down profit forecast for the year to August.

      Fujifilm rose 2.49 per cent to 5,459 yen on hopes for the clinical trials of its anti-flu drug Avigan for coronavirus patients.

      Other major shares were mixed, with Toyota slipping 0.67 per cent to 6,635 yen and Sony down 0.61 per cent at 6,670 yen, but Nintendo jumped 1.46 per cent to 44,370 yen.