Japan Nikkei closes at 6-week high

Japanese shares advanced to fifth straight session on Wednesday, 20 July 2022, with the benchmark Nikkei index finishing at its highest level in almost six weeks, as investors took heart from overnight rally on the Wall Street rallies overnight and ahead of the end of the Bank of Japan's two-day policy-setting meeting that began on the day.

Market sentiments also bolstered by reports that Russia and Ukraine are nearing a deal that would end the blockade on grain exports, and that Nord Stream 1 is likely to restart gas exports on schedule after maintenance is completed.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average advanced 71858 points, or 2.67%, to 27,680.26, its highest close since 10 June 2022. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 43.65 points, or 2.29%, to 1,946.44.

Tech shares led the surge, with Advantest, Screen Holdings and Tokyo Electron rallying 4-5%. Technology investor SoftBank Group advanced 2.4%.

Japan Airlines rose 2% even as a report said the airliner would relocate about 3,000 employees to other businesses, such as low-cost carrier operations, as travel demand remains weak.

Shares of Toyota Corp advanced after the Japanese automaker statement that its production in August would be around 7 lakh units, lower than the previously announced figure of 850,000 units, due to a parts shortage related to Covid disruptions.

CURRENCY NEWS: The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 106.503, after falling sharply. The Japanese yen traded at 138.13 per dollar, stronger than the levels seen last week.

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