By Laura He, MarketWatch
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Japan stocks climbed on Tuesday to
its highest closing level in seven months, with a softer yen
helping boost export-related shares.
The Nikkei Average ended up 1.2% at 15,668.60, a closing level
it hasn't seen since late January. The broader Topix index also
rose 1.1%.
Meanwhile, the yen (USDJPY) declined against the greenback,
trading at Yen104.854 from Yen104.354 a day ago.
Exporters posted substantial gains, as camera maker Olympus
Corp. advanced 3%, console maker Nintendo Co., Ltd. rose 2.9%,
IT-services provider Fujitsu Ltd. added 2.8%, electronics giant
Hitachi, Ltd. improved by 2.3%, and PC manufacturer NEC Corp.
tacked on 2.2%.
In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng Index finished flat.
Market movers included telecom giant China Mobile Ltd. , up
2.1%, while Internet major Tencent Holdings Ltd. fell 0.7%, and
Sino-British banking giant HSBC Holdings PLC dropped 0.5%.
Elsewhere, mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index settled
1.4% higher, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 closed up 0.5%, while
South Korea's Kospi Composite Index was off 0.8%.
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