Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock exchange has hit a record high of 44,396.95, continuing a record run that began at the start of this year.
The Japanese market has been rising this year as investors look outside the U.S. for opportunities. It most recently got a boost from soft American inflation data that boosted the odds of an interest rate cut from the U.S. Federal Reserve.
One of Nikkei 255's heavyweights, technology investment firm SoftBank (SFTBY), jumped 10% to notch a second straight day of gains, pushing the Japanese bourse higher.
Beyond Softbank, energy and utility stocks are leading gains on the Nikkei 225, in the same way they are leading on U.S. exchanges.
Mitsui Mining and Smelting rose more than 5% while electrical components manufacturer Fujikura traded 4% higher on Sept. 11.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi exchange rose 0.9% to its highest close on record at 3,344.2, and the small-cap Kosdaq increased 0.21% to 834.76.
Hong Kong’s main Hang Seng Index fell 0.21%, while the Hang Seng Tech index rose 0.23%. Mainland China’s CSI 300 exchange gained 2.31% to close at 4,548.03.
At the same time, India’s benchmark Nifty 50 exchange increased 0.13%.
Stateside, the benchmark S&P 500 and technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite indices are each at record highs on artificial intelligence hype and expectations for interest rate cuts.
Tech Insider
