Japan Market advances on Wall Street's rise, softer yen

Japan share market advanced on Thursday, 24 October 2019, as investors' mood buoyed by tracking gains on Wall Street overnight after upbeat corporate earnings results and amid expectations for domestic earnings to follow suit. A slightly weaker yen supported Japan's major exporters stocks, because this tends to boost earnings repatriated from overseas. Meanwhile, buying momentum was also supported as European Union leaders consider Britain's request for a Brexit delay, and are expected to grant a three-month extension to the Oct. 31 deadline for its departure. At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average was up 125.22 points, or 0.55%, to 22,750.60, the highest closing since October 2018, while the broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 5.60 points, or 0.34%, at 1,643.74.

Total 30 issues of the 33 industry category of Topix index inclined into positive territory, with Marine Transportation, Pharmaceutical, Nonferrous Metals, Mining, Other Financial Business, and Land Transportation issues being notable gainers.

Investors were watching developments pegged to Brexit, after a vote for a fast-track exit for Britain from the EU was rejected by parliament on Tuesday, but the delay eases concerns about the U.K. crashing out of the bloc without a deal on Oct. 31. The U.K. government has already asked for an extension to the end of January 2020, and European Council President Donald Tusk said on Twitter that he would recommend that request is granted.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was forced by parliament to ask for three months, but there is still a chance that some EU countries, notably France, could demand a shorter extension. Johnson paused his bill to enact the Brexit deal he struck last week with the European Union's 27 other member states, after dramatic votes on Tuesday in which the British parliament accepted the deal in principle but rejected a three-day timetable for passing the necessary legislation.

Semiconductor-related shares surged on optimism for improved corporate earnings following Microsoft Corp's higher-than-expected sales forecasts for its cloud computing services. Chip-making equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron Ltd rose 1.89%, while electronic devices maker Kyocera Corp gained 0.92%.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen, often viewed as a safe-haven currency in times of economic uncertainty, was tad stronger against greenback. The Japanese yen traded at 108.36, strengthening from 108.51 seen earlier.

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