BANGKOK– Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock benchmark has risen to a record high, surpassing the previous record set in December 1989 in heavy buying by global investors.
The index closed at 39,098.68 on Thursday. The previous record was 38,915.87, just before Japan’s bubble economy collapsed in the early 1990s.
Japanese shares have posted sharp gains in recent months, helped by strong interest from foreign investors who account for most of the trading volume on the Tokyo stock exchange.
Record gains in corporate profits have increased the appeal of shares in Japanese companies. The weakness of the Japanese yen against the US dollar has also attracted investors despite the prolonged weakness of the economy, which fell back into a technical recession late last year.
Elsewhere in Asia, most markets posted solid gains.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 0.9% to 16,645.45 and the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.9% to 2,976.88.
The Australian S&The P/ASX 200 edged less than 0.1% higher to 7,611.20, while Seoul’s Kospi rose 0.4% to 2,663.35.
Stocks closed largely higher on Wall Street on Wednesday after a lethargic trading day, with big tech stocks once again acting as a heavy weight on the market.
The S&The P500 rose 0.1% to 4,981.80. The benchmark index lost ground for much of the day before climbing higher again just before markets closed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average also posted a slight gain after losing ground for most of the day. It rose 0.1% to 38,612.24.
The Nasdaq technology indicator fell 0.3% to 15,580.87 points.
Profit remained the main focus. After markets closed, Nvidia reported earnings and revenue that easily beat Wall Street forecasts. The chipmaker has tripled in size in the past year thanks to an increase in investor enthusiasm about artificial intelligence.
Palo Alto Networks was a big loser and had a particularly heavy weight in the technology sector. The network security company fell 28.4% after making forecasts for future billings that were well below analysts’ expectations. Rival Fortinet fell 3.8%.
Amazon rose 0.9% after announcing it would be added to the Dow Jones. Walgreens Boots Alliance, which is leaving the Dow Jones, fell 2.5%
Bond yields gained ground. The yield on the 10-year government bond rose to 4.33% from 4.28% late Tuesday.
Technology stocks were responsible for much of the market’s rally, pushing it to record highs last week. The sector also shows one of the strongest earnings growth. However, skewed contributions from some of the sector’s larger companies have raised questions about whether the profits were exaggerated.
Several other companies have made big moves after publishing their financial results. Electronic measurement technology company Keysight Technologies fell 6.7% after its profit forecast fell short of analyst expectations. Garmin, which makes personal navigation devices, rose 8.8% after beating profit forecasts.
Toll Brothers rose 3.9% after giving investors an encouraging financial update as the company sees strong demand. That helped support profits across the housing sector.
Energy companies gained ground as natural gas prices rose 12.5%. Exxon Mobil rose 2%.
The Federal Reserve released minutes from its last meeting in January, showing most officials worried about moving too quickly to cut their benchmark interest rate. During that meeting, the central bank left interest rates unchanged for the fourth time in a row. Investors have all but lost hope that the central bank will cut rates at its March meeting and are looking forward to the first rate cut in June.
Investors will have to wait until next week for another major update on inflation. That’s when the government will release its monthly report on personal consumption and spending, the Fed’s preferred inflation measure.
Separate measures of consumer and wholesale prices in January show that inflation did not cool as much as expected. That prompted investors to shift expectations for interest rate cuts from March to June. A weak retail sales report added to disappointing inflation data and raised fears that persistent inflation is hurting consumers further.
In other trading Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude gained 28 cents to $78.19 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 28 cents to $83.31 a barrel.
The US dollar traded at 150.32 Japanese yen, up from 150.04 yen. The euro stood at $1.0827, virtually unchanged.