The Nikkei stock index surged Thursday morning to briefly surpass its 1989 all-time closing high, as technology issues were sought following strong earnings results and a positive outlook from U.S. chip giant Nvidia Corp.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 651.68 points, or 1.70 percent, from Wednesday to 38,913.84. The broader Topix index was up 28.94 points, or 1.10 percent, at 2,656.24.
The U.S. dollar remained firm in the lower 150 yen range as the currency was bought following an overnight rise in long-term U.S. Treasury yields.
At noon, the dollar fetched 150.40-41 yen compared with 150.25-35 yen in New York and 150.14-16 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
The euro was quoted at $1.0824-0828 and 162.79-86 yen against $1.0814-0824 and 162.57-67 yen in New York and $1.0810-0811 and 162.31-35 yen in Tokyo late Wednesday afternoon.
The Nikkei index briefly climbed over 660 points to 38,924.88 to top its all-time closing high of 38,915.87 recorded in December 1989, as chip-related Tokyo Electron and Advantest drew active buying.
The advance came after Nvidia reported Wednesday that its net profit in the quarter ended January jumped 8.7-fold from a year earlier to a record $12.3 billion, exceeding market consensus, on robust demand for artificial intelligence development.
"The robust outcome from Nvidia raised hopes for the future growth of artificial intelligence," said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities Co.
The yen's slight depreciation against the dollar also lifted auto and other export-oriented issues, as a weaker yen boosts their overseas profits when repatriated.
Stocks have been climbing sharply recently, backed by hopes of favorable earnings from Japanese firms amid the yen's weakness.
