TOKYO, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks rose sharply on Monday as market sentiment was lifted after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he would not immediately increase the capital gains tax rate, and the weaker yen against the U.S. dollar benefited exporters.
Opening slightly low in the morning, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average finished 449.26 points, or 1.60 percent, higher from Friday at 28,498.20.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange opened slightly higher than the previous close and ended 34.73 points, or 1.77 percent, higher at 1,996.58.
Trading volume on the main section decreased to 1,194.17 million shares from Friday's 1,356.77 million shares.
The U.S. dollar to Japanese yen strengthened to 112 yen range, its highest level since December 2018. Dealers said that the market participants unloaded the yen, perceived as a safe-haven asset, with advances in the Japanese stock market.
Tokyo stocks opened mixed in the morning but quickly attacked upward, as the weaker yen attracted buying on export-related issues, and Kishida said Sunday on a TV program that he would not change the capital gains tax rate for the time being, brokers said.
The prime minister also confirmed on Monday in a lower house plenary session that the government would need to do many things such as pay raises before reviewing the tax on capital gains and dividends.
The brokers said that the recent downtrend of the Tokyo market was triggered by increasing concerns over Kishida's plan, which might raise the capital gains tax from the current flat 20 percent to implement his wealth redistribution policy.
Yutaka Miura, a senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities Co., "The advances were attributed to a set of positive factors including Mr. Kishida's remarks, a weaker yen boosting exporters and sharp gains in the Hang Seng stock index in Chinese Hong Kong market."
At the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, the Middle East crude oil futures briefly eclipsed 54,500 yen (482.56 U.S. dollars) per liter, logging the highest level since October 2018, following the increase in the benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude futures. The oil price has been climbing recently on expectations of a global supply crunch.
Marine transportation, air transportation, and mining firms headed the upward trend. By the close of play, advancing issues outnumbered declining ones 1,834 to 295 on the First Section, while 54 finished unchanged.
Among major exporters, Mitsubishi Motors surged 5.9 percent, Nintendo rose 1.0 percent, and construction machinery maker Komatsu ended up 1.3 percent.
Bucking the upward trend, industrial machinery maker Yaskawa Electric dropped 1.9 percent after its earnings forecast for the year through February 2022 released late last week did not meet market expectations. Its announcement is widely viewed as a bellwether for the performance of Japanese manufacturers. Enditem
