Tokyo: Nikkei jumps more than 1.3% with eyes on US vote

[TOKYO] Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index rallied more than 1.3 per cent Monday on bargain-hunting, with the market bracing for the US presidential election.

The Nikkei 225 index rose 1.39 per cent or 318.35 points to close at 23,295.48, snapping a five-day losing streak. The broader Topix index gained 1.81 per cent or 28.62 points to 1,607.95.

"It's quite natural to see shares rebound following last week's sharp decline," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

"After a round of buying back, however, players remained sidelined, waiting to see the results of the US presidential election, which is really unpredictable," Mr Horiuchi told AFP.

Tokyo financial markets will be closed on Tuesday for a national holiday.

The US dollar fetched 104.71 yen in Asian afternoon trade, against 104.67 yen in New York.

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In Tokyo, Japan Airlines gained 1.81 per cent to 1,850 yen after it forecast an annual net loss of more than US$2.3 billion, as the coronavirus pandemic keeps flights grounded worldwide.

Toyota jumped 2.14 per cent to 6,949 yen after a report said the automaker will boost output to record levels in the November-January period in response to robust demand in China and the US.

Sony rose 1.08 per cent to 8,768 yen after a report said the company was in talks to acquire US animation distributor Crunchyroll from AT&T.

AFP