Nikkei records fourth weekly rise as yen weakens

Japanese Nikkei index rose on Friday, but did not reach a new high in three decades, despite achieving gains for the fourth week in a row, as the weakness of the yen gave a boost to the shares of export companies.

According to Reuters, the Nikkei closed trading up 0.5%, rising 0.12% during the week. The index has risen by approximately nine percent so far this month

The broader Topix index rose 0.54% on Friday. On Monday, the index reached the peak of the post-1990 period, which was 33,853.46 points, before changing its course sharply as investors took profits.

Of the 225 stocks listed on the Nikkei index, 164 rose and 61 declined.

The yen was trading stable at 149.25 to the dollar, hovering around the same level for the third day. On Tuesday, the yen rose to its highest level in more than two months, recording 147.155, thanks to expectations of a more accommodative direction in monetary policy from the US Central Bank, which pushed the dollar to decline.

The decline of the yen increases the value of Japanese imports. Toyota Motor stock was among the biggest gainers out of the 30 main companies listed on Topix, with an increase of 2.73%, followed by Recruit Holdings stock. As for Daikin Industries shares, it fell by 2.4%, as well as Sony Group shares, by 1.27%.

SoftBank Group’s shares for investing in emerging companies increased 0.48%, driven by a rise of more than five percent in one of the main companies in which the group invests, which is ARM for chip design.