Tokyo: Stocks rise as data shows GDP contraction revised lower

[TOKYO] Japanese stocks rose for a second day after a report showed the country's economy shrank less than previously reported. Non-ferrous metals producers led gains, while brokerages dropped.

The Topix index climbed 0.3 per cent to 1,449.37 as of 9:02 am in Tokyo, with four stocks rising for every three that fell. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.5 per cent to 17,944.11. The yen fell 0.2 per cent to 119.47 per dollar as a report showed Japan's second-quarter gross domestic product shrank an annualised 1.2 per cent compared with a previous estimate of a 1.6 per cent contraction.

Economists had forecast the GDP revision to show a 1.8 per cent contraction. A separate report showed the nation's July current account surplus was 1.81 trillion yen, wider than economist estimates of 1.73 trillion yen.

Turnover was light, with volume on the Topix 10 percent below the 30-day intraday average as investors awaited the release of August data on the China's trade. Economists estimate exports from the world's second-biggest economy shrank 6.6 per cent from a year earlier, while imports contracted by 7.9 per cent.

Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.9 per cent from Friday's close. US markets were closed Monday for Labor Day.

BLOOMBERG