Tokyo stocks climb on confidence in global economy

Tokyo, Dec 26 (AFP/APP): Tokyo stocks rose Thursday morning, reflecting investor confidence in the global economy after the recent US-China trade deal.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.62 percent or 146.57 points to 23,929.44 in early trade, while the broader Topix index rose 0.48 percent or 8.22 points at 1,729.64.

After opening almost flat, stocks steadily rose.

“Investor sentiment towards the global economy is improving,” said Rakuten Securities chief strategist Masayuki Kubota.

“Given the truce in the US-China trade row, there are rising hopes for a recovery in corporate capital spending that has been held back amid the US-China tensions.”

The dollar was trading at 109.36 yen on Thursday, hardly changed from the previous day.

Nissan recouped some ground after plunging more than three percent on Wednesday on news that its number three executive has decided to quit just weeks after taking the job.

The auto giant was up 0.72 percent at 637.7 yen in early Thursday trade.

Other automakers were also firm on a stable yen, with Toyota up 0.31 percent at 7,700 yen and Honda up 0.99 percent at 3,143 yen.