Buoyed by strong results from Canon Inc. and the yen's decline against the euro as well as the U.S. dollar, the Japanese stock market is trading notably higher on Wednesday, extending gains to a fourth successive session.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index is currently trading at 9,675, up 178.2 points or 1.8% over its previous close.
Automobile, banking, construction, pharmaceuticals, communications and glass & ceramics stocks are mostly up with notable gains. Transport equipment, gas, rubber and chemicals stocks are exhibiting a mixed trend.
Trend Micro, Credit Saison, T&D Holding Inc., Konica Minolta and Ricoh Co. shares are up over 5%. Fuji Heavy Industries, CSK Holdings, Advantest, Nomura Holdings, JFE Holdings, Sumco, NTT Data Corp., Fujifilm Holding, Clarion, Yokohama Rubber, TDK and Japan Tobacco are also up sharply.
After trading hours on Tuesday, Canon Inc. reported that its net income more than quadrupled to 67.6 billion yen in the three months ended June 30 from a year ago. The company maintained its full-year forecast. The stock is up over 4.5% at present.
Bank stocks Shinsei Bank, Sumitomo Trust & Banking, Mizuho Securities, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial, Chuo Mitsui Trust, Shizuoka Bank and Mizuho Trust & Banking are trading sharply higher.
Automobile stocks Toyota Motor, Honda Motor, Mitsubishi Motors, Suzuki Motor, Hino Motors and Isuzu Motors are also trading notably higher.
Yamazaki Baking Co. shares are trading notably lower amid concerns over higher wheat prices.
Shares of Arisawa Manufacturing Co. are up sharply following an announcement from the company that it will likely book a group net profit of 810 million yen in financial year 2010.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar traded at the upper 87 yen level in early deals in Tokyo. The yen is currently trading at 87.75 to the U.S. dollar.
Among other markets in the Asia-Pacific region, New Zealand is up with notable gains. Australia and Singapore are up marginally, while Shanghai, Malaysia, South Korea and Taiwan are exhibiting some weakness. Markets across the region ended on a mixed note on Tuesday.
On Wall Street, stocks closed on opposite sides of the unchanged mark on Tuesday, as a mixed batch of economic data and solid quarterly earnings results divided market sentiment on the day. While the Dow eked out a modest gain, the Nasdaq and the S&P 500 declined by slim margins.
On the economic front, the Conference Board released a report showing that its consumer confidence index fell to 50.4 in July from an upwardly revised 54.3 in June. Economists had expected the index to slip to a reading of 51.0 compared to the 52.9 originally reported for the previous month.
The Dow gained 12.26 points or 0.1% to close at 10,537.69, a new two-month closing high, while the Nasdaq declined by 8.2 points or 0.4% to 2,288.3 and the S&P 500 slipped by 1.2 points or 0.1% to 1,113.8.
Major European markets ended with moderate gains on Tuesday. The French CAC 40 index gained 0.8%, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 index and the German DAX index advanced by 0.3% and 0.2% respectively.
Crude oil prices declined on Tuesday amid data showing a bigger-than-expected decline in U.S. consumer confidence. Light, sweet crude for September delivery settled at US$77.50 a barrel, down US$1.48, on the session.
The price of crude oil had advanced 4% in the previous week to hit a two-month high, as strong corporate results from the U.S. helped prop up risk appetite of investors and a tropical storm threatened to disrupt production on the Gulf of Mexico.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.