Tokyo stocks end at 17-month high

Tokyo stocks surged to a 17-month high Monday on the back of a strong US jobs report and after pro-European centrist Emmanuel Macron beat his far-right rival in France's presidential election. Markets breathed a sigh of relief as the result effectively eliminates any risk of France leaving the eurozone - a departure advocated by Macron's eurosceptic challenger Marine Le Pen.
Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index added 2.31 percent, or 450.00 points, to finish the day at 19,895.70, its highest close since December 2015. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares climbed 2.29 percent, or 35.56 points, to 1,585.86. The election briefly boosted the euro above $1.10 briefly before easing back, with analysts saying the Macron win had already been priced in. Japanese financial markets were closed from Wednesday to Friday for national holidays.
"Since the French presidential election ended with the result that markets had expected, investors' risk appetite is on the rise," Hiroaki Hiwata, a market strategist at Toyo Securities, told AFP. "It is likely to be the same story for European and US markets, with expectations for strong corporate earnings also supporting sentiment." Almost definitive election results showed Macron winning 65.82 percent of the vote in the first ever election he has contested, far ahead of Le Pen at 34.18 percent. "There's a certain amount of relief in the market," Mitsuo Shimizu, deputy general manager at Tokyo-based Japan Asia Securities, told Bloomberg News.
The dollar edged down to 112.72 yen from 112.80 yen in New York Friday but well up from levels seen before Japan entered the spring holidays. A weaker yen is positive for Japanese shares as it inflates the value of profits that firms earn overseas. Wall Street stock rallied to fresh records Friday as the solid US jobs report further strengthened the odds that the Federal Reserve will stick to a planned course of two more interest rate hikes in 2017.
Japanese firms with a strong presence in Europe were among the key gainers Monday with Sony jumping 3.52 percent to 3,989 yen and Hitachi adding 1.92 percent to end at 635.5 yen. Automaker Mazda rose 1.93 percent to 1,634 yen as Toyota gained 1.49 percent to 6,235 yen, while Nintendo tacked on 1.60 percent to close at 28,810 yen.