TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Tokyo stocks opened higher on Tuesday as investors bet on strengthening chances of Hillary Clinton winning the US presidential election.
“We’ve been swung this way and that over who may win, but expectations of a Clinton victory are firming,” said Toshihiko Matsuno, a senior strategist at SMBC Friend Securities Co.
“Since it’s easier to predict policy with her, there’s more of a sense of security in the market.
“Stocks may price in 70 to 80 percent (chance) of a Clinton victory today,” he told Bloomberg News.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.28 percent, or 48.95 points, to 17,226.16 in the first few minutes of trading while the Topix index of all first-section issues was up 0.25 percent, or 3.36 points, at 1,366.16.
Global markets rose on Monday after US authorities again cleared Clinton of criminal wrongdoing over her handling of emails.
Her White House rival Donald Trump is viewed as a wildcard by markets because of his unpredictability and broadsides against the Federal Reserve, free trade and other targets.
The dollar held up, trading at 104.56 yen early Tuesday against 104.53 yen in New York Monday afternoon.
In Tokyo stocks trade, market heavyweight SoftBank shares rose 1.19 percent to 6,440 yen after the mobile carrier said its first-half profits soared nearly 80 percent.
Nikon was up 1.04 percent at 1,643 yen after the Nikkei business daily reported it plans to eliminate about 1,000 jobs in Japan, or 10 percent of its domestic workforce, mainly in the loss-making sectors of cameras and microchip-making devices.
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