Nikkei Rises After Weaker JPY and Oil Drop

apan’s Nikkei index closed at its highest level for two weeks, with exporters boosted by a weaker yen and airlines helped by falling oil prices.

The Nikkei 225 closed up 211.35 points, or 1.2%, at 17,459.85.

Shares in exporters rose as the dollar went above 118 yen. A weaker yen helps make Japanese exports more competitive.

Falling oil prices and the prospect of cheaper fuel pushed Japan Airlines’ shares up 5.3%, while rival All Nippon Airways jumped 7.4%.

The decision by oil producers’ group Opec on Thursday to maintain current output levels sent the price of oil down sharply. Brent crude was trading at $72.49 a barrel on Friday having fallen by more than $5 on Thursday.

Investors were also digesting a large amount of economic data from Japan, which painted a mixed picture of the world’s third-largest economy.

Excluding the effect of a large tax rise in April, the inflation rate in October was 0.9%, way below the 2% target.

Including the tax rise, core inflation was 2.9% higher in October than a year ago, compared with 3% in September.

Household spending fell by 4% in the year to October, but retail sales rose 1.4%, beating expectations and the unemployment rate fell from 3.6% to 3.5%.

via BBC

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