Nikkei hits 15-month high as global demand hopes boost exporters

SINGAPORE, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Japan's benchmark share index
rose to its highest in 15 months on Friday, as hopes for
rebounding global demand and a softer yen drove broad-based
gains.
The Nikkei 225 Index .N225 rose half a percentage point to
touch its highest level since October 2018 and has added more
than 1% this year. The broader Topix .TOPX was 0.4% stronger.
"When you look at Japan, you're not just looking at Japan.
Half of earnings at Japanese companies are non-Japanese, so
there is a big international story," said Jim McCafferty, Joint
Head of APAC Equity Research at Nomura in Hong Kong.
"As we go into earnings season we are probably going to get
guidance from a number of companies that point to a
strengthening in global demand."
The formal signing of the Sino-U.S. trade agreement on
Wednesday and the recent easing of tensions in the Middle East
have removed uncertainty and fired hopes for a revival in global
growth and demand. Chinese economic data released on Friday, while subdued for
the year, included an unexpected jump in factory output and
solid retail sales in December, suggesting the world's second
biggest economy ended the year on a firmer note. Optimism has also pushed the safe-haven Japanese yen JPY=
to an almost eight-month low - a boon for exporters. The dollar
last traded at 110.23 yen, up 0.08 % during the session. FRX/
Gains were spread across all sectors of the market, with 167
advancers on the Nikkei index against 46 decliners.
Growth-exposed exporters, such as construction-equipment
maker Komatsu Ltd 6301.T , led manufacturing gains, rising 1.5%
to a two-week high. Firms such as Toyota Motor Corp. 7203.T
and Sony 6758.T also made advances.
The largest percentage gainers in the index were industrial
instrument maker Yokogawa Electric Corp 6841.T , up 4.32%,
followed by power-supply equipment maker Fuji Electric Co Ltd
6504.T , gaining 4.28 % and logistics firm Yamato Holdings Co
Ltd 9064.T , up 3.44%.
Financials found support, too, after Morgan Stanley MS.N
overnight capped a solid set of fourth-quarter results from Wall
Street's big banks this week, boding well for their Japanese
peers.
Nomura Holdings 8604.T rose 1%, while Mitsubishi UFJ
Financial Group 8306.T and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group
8316.T also gained.