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The Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.4% to close at 42,807.82. The broader Topix added just under 0.2%.
SoftBank Group and chip-testing equipment maker Advantest were among the biggest contributors to the Nikkei’s advance, climbing 3.5% and 1.1%, respectively.
In a closely-watched speech at the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, the central bank‘s Chair, Jerome Powell, signalled the possibility of a rate cut next month.
Going in the other direction, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda highlighted wage growth that is feeding into conditions for a resumption of interest rate increases.
The divergence in the central bank’s policy led to a surge in the yen, crimping revenue prospects for Japanese exporters. Increasing prospects for a U.S. rate cut acted as tailwind for tech stocks on Wall Street and in Japan, said Nomura strategist Fumika Shimizu. “As a result, Japanese semiconductor-related stocks are also showing strength and leading the market,” Shimizu said. “There is a possibility that the recent slight upward trend in the yen is weighing on the market.”
There were 118 advancers on the Nikkei index against 107 decliners.
TOTO jumped 7.9% to be the biggest percentage gainer on the benchmark after the luxury toilet maker said on Friday it was opening a $224 million plant in the U.S. southern state of Georgia, shifting production away from Asia.
The biggest loser on the index was Terumo, down 4%, after saying it would spend $1.5 billion to buy Britain-based Organox, a maker of organ preservation technology.
