Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Japanese Stocks Rise; Dollar Down

TOKYO - Japanese stocks surged Monday following fresh economic data that showed an increase in capital investment by the nation's businesses. Real estate, brokerage and technology issues led the advance.

The Nikkei 225 index rose 223.05 points, or 1.36 percent, to finish the morning session at 16,357.30 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The index slipped a mere 0.04 percent Friday.

Sentiment was spurred by government data showing that capital investment spending by Japanese corporations jumped 16.6 percent from a year earlier in the April-June quarter, suggesting second-quarter economic growth figures could be revised up.

The quarterly survey also showed that corporate current profits rose 10.1 percent during the period, according to a survey released by the Finance Ministry. Corporate sales increased 8.6 percent, the ministry said.

The rise in capital expenditure marked the 13th straight quarter of gains. The data suggest corporate investment, which makes up about 15 percent of gross domestic product, continues to support the world's second-largest economy.

Also, the market was getting support from good employment data in the U.S. - Japan's largest market - and recent weakness in the yen, which helps exporters, traders said.

The broader TOPIX, which includes all issues on the exchange's first section, added 18.18 points, or 1.11 percent, to 1,651.53.

In currencies, the U.S. dollar was trading at 116.69 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 11 a.m. Monday, down from 117.06 yen from late Friday in New York. The euro rose to $1.2858 from $1.2836.

The yield on Japan's 10-year government bond rose to 1.6800 percent from Friday's finish of 1.6400 percent. Its price fell to 101.81 from 102.19.

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