TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market is notably higher on Wednesday and the safe-haven yen weakened following the positive cues overnight from Wall Street amid optimism that China's stimulus measures will help offset the economic impact of the deadly coronavirus outbreak.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 212.58 points or 0.92 percent to 23,297.17, after surging to a high of 23,406.26 in early trades. Japanese stocks closed higher on Tuesday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group Corp. is advancing more than 1 percent and Fast Retailing is up 0.2 percent.
Among tech stocks, Advantest is declining almost 1 percent, while Tokyo Electron is adding almost 1 percent.
The major exporters are mostly higher on a weaker yen. Panasonic is higher by more than 1 percent, Canon is rising 0.6 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is adding 0.2 percent.
Sony is declining 1 percent after reporting a decrease in third-quarter profit and raising its full-year outlook.
Among auto stocks, Honda Motor is adding almost 1 percent and Toyota Motor is rising 0.8 percent.
In the oil sector, Japan Petroleum is advancing 1 percent and Inpex is higher by 0.7 percent even as crude oil prices declined overnight.
Among the other major gainers, Kikkoman Corp. and Nichirei Corp. are rising more than 4 percent, while Yokogawa Electric and Mineabea Mitsumi are gaining almost 4 percent each.
Conversely, NTT Data is falling more than 9 percent, Tobu Railway is losing almost 4 percent and Ube Industries is declining more than 2 percent.
In economic news, the latest survey from Jibun Bank revealed that the services sector in Japan continued to expand in January, albeit at a slower rate, with a PMI score of 51.0. That's down from 52.1 in December, although it remains further above the boom-or-bust line of 50 that separates expansion from contraction.
Also, the bank's composite index came in at 50.1 - down from 51.1 in the previous month.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 109 yen-range on Wednesday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Tuesday on the heels of strength in overseas markets, with Chinese stocks rebounding following the nosedive seen as trading resumed on Monday. Traders seem to expect China to announce additional stimulus to boost the economy amid the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak. In economic news, the Commerce Department released a report showing new orders for U.S. manufactured goods spiked by more than anticipated in the month of December.
The Dow jumped 407.82 points or 1.4 percent to 28,807.63, the Nasdaq soared 194.57 points or 2.1 percent to 9,467.97 and the S&P 500 surged up 48.67 points or 1.5 percent to 3,297.59.
The major European markets also showed strong moves to the upside on Tuesday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index has jumped by 1.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both spiked by 1.8 percent.
Crude oil futures failed to hold early gains and settled lower on Tuesday, weighed down by concerns over the outlook for energy demand amid the rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak in China. WTI crude futures ended down $0.50, or about 1 percent, at $49.61 a barrel.
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