Foreign Markets

Japan share market finished session slight higher on Wednesday, 07 April 2021, as investors chased for bargain hunting after the market's fall a day earlier and upward world economy growth revision by the International Monetary Fund.

At closing bell, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average added 34.16 points, or 0.12%, to 29,730.79. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 13.09 points, or 0.67%, to 1,967.43.

Total 29 sub-indexes of the 33 sector sub-indexes on the Tokyo exchange traded higher, with Iron & Steel, Marine Transportation, Metal Products, Nonferrous Metals, Mining, Glass & Ceramics Products, and Rubber Products issues being notable gainers.

The International Monetary Fund expects growth at 6% in 2021, up from a January prediction of 5.5%. The IMF expects the US economy to grow by 6.4% in 2021, up by 1.3 percentage points from the IMF's 5.1% 2021 projection in late January and nearly double the rate it estimated last October 2020. IMF Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said the improvement was largely due to increased fiscal support, including a new $1.9 trillion U.S. aid package, accelerated vaccinations and continued adaptation of economic activity to overcome pandemic restrictions. However, she warned that the pandemic was still far from defeated and coronavirus cases were still rising in many countries.

China's growth forecast for 2021 was raised by 0.3 percentage point to 8.4%, an increase that Gopinath said largely reflected external demand for Chinese exports, driven largely by the U.S. stimulus spending. But she said that consumer spending in China was still lagging, and growth was primarily being driven by public investments.

Trading in Toshiba Corp.'s shares was halted after the Tokyo-based technology conglomerate confirmed it had received a preliminary acquisition proposal.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Japanese yen changed hands at 109.84 per dollar, weakening from an earlier level around 109.56.

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