Tokyo, 17 March, /AJMEDIA
Tokyo stocks opened sharply higher Thursday, with the benchmark Nikkei index surging over 3 percent, as sentiment was supported by advances on Wall Street following an optimistic outlook for the U.S. economy presented by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
In the first 15 minutes of trading, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 827.52 points, or 3.21 percent, from Wednesday to 26,589.53. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange was up 45.49 points, or 2.45 percent, to 1,898.74.
Gainers were led by electric appliance, precision instrument, and machinery issues.
At 9 a.m., the dollar fetched 118.85-90 yen compared with 118.70-80 yen in New York and 118.37-38 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
The euro was quoted at $1.1023-1025 and 131.01-09 yen against $1.1031-1041 and 130.97-131.07 yen in New York and $1.0959-0960 and 129.72-76 yen in Tokyo late Wednesday afternoon.
