TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index closed at a 26-year high for the second consecutive day on Friday as Wall Street continued a record-setting advance.
The bellwether index, which hit its best level since January 1992 on the first trading day of 2018 Thursday, added another 0.89 percent, or 208.20 points, to close at 23,714.53.
The broader Topix index was up 0.89 percent, or 16.52 points, at 1,880.34.
World stock markets went on another record-smashing run Thursday fuelled by a bright economic outlook and strong oil prices, with Wall Street’s Dow index powering past 25,000 for the first time and London also reaching a new record peak.
“Today’s gain underlined the strength of the current stock market,” said Shinichi Yamamoto, a senior strategist at Okasan Securities.
“It would be no surprise if profit-taking emerges any time following the recent fast-paced gains, but investors continued to bet on buying,” Yamamoto told AFP.
The dollar was at 112.99 yen Friday against 112.72 yen in New York Thursday afternoon.
Banks rose with Mitsubishi UFJ up 2.32 percent at 866.8 yen and Mizuho Financial up 1.24 percent at 212.1 yen.
Oil explorers also gained ground on higher crude prices. Japan Petroleum was up 2.13 percent at 3,115 yen.
Toshiba jumped 2.16 percent to 330 yen after its troubled subsidiary Westinghouse agreed to be sold to Brookfield Business Partners for $4.6 billion.
© Agence France-Presse