TOKYO stocks opened higher today as investors took heart from strong US retail sector reports and worries eased over inflation.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.4%, or 114.52 points, at 28,983.43 in early trade, while the broader Topix index advanced 0.46%, or 9.1 points, to 1,991.06.

Overnight, US equities finished the day mixed after bouncing around for most of the session, with investors digesting solid retail company earnings but disappointing housing data.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.7% and the broad-based S&P 500 ended up 0.2%, while the tech-rich Nasdaq retreated 0.2% after recovering from the low point of the day.

“Japanese shares are receiving a tailwind from rallies in the US Dow” index, Monex senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama said.

On Wall Street, “investors embraced Walmart earnings figures which exceeded the market’s diminished profit expectations” and the company issued a “modestly improved full-year forecast”, National Australia Bank senior strategist Rodrigo Catril said.

The dollar fetched ¥134.24 (RM4.46), against ¥134.21 in New York and around ¥133 in Tokyo yesterday. A cheaper yen and easing worries over inflation also supported the Japanese market, analysts said.

SoftBank Group was up 0.26% at ¥5,764 in the wake of a report that said US-based investor Elliott Management had sold nearly all its remaining SoftBank shares after previously investing up to US$2.5 billion (RM11.2 billion).

Toyota was up 1.96% at ¥2,162.5, Sony Group rallied 2.41% to ¥11,885, and Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing was up 2.05% at ¥87,490.

Japan recorded a trade deficit of ¥1.44 trillion in July, the 12th-consecutive monthly deficit due to a rise in imports caused by soaring fuel prices, according to data released before the opening bell.

The data did not prompt a strong market reaction. – AFP, August 17, 2022.