schema:articleBody
| - Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index jumped more than 2.2 percent on Monday following rallies in the US and Asia on fresh hopes for coronavirus treatments. The Nikkei 225 index was up 2.22 percent, or 493.93 points, to close at 22,784.74, while the broader Topix index surged 2.46 percent, or 37.82 points, to 1,573.02. Japanese shares opened higher on gains in US shares, with investors encouraged by news of progress in the development of coronavirus vaccines and treatment, brokers said. On Wall Street, investors cheered remarks from the head of German biotech firm BioNTech to the Wall Street Journal that a vaccine candidate would be ready for regulatory review by the end of the year. Analysts also pointed to a positive announcement from Gilead Sciences about clinical trials on remdesivir, a drug treatment for coronavirus. Tokyo shares rose further in afternoon trade "as investors were encouraged by gains in other Asian markets," said Shinichi Yamamoto, a broker at Okasan Securities in Tokyo. Looking ahead, investors are watching China's June trade account and second quarter GDP data due on Tuesday and Thursday respectively, and the Bank of Japan's policy decision on Wednesday, among others, analysts said. The dollar fetched 106.85 yen in Asian afternoon trade against 106.91 yen in New York on Friday. Among major winners in Tokyo, Canon jumped 5.15 percent to 2,110.5 yen and Mazda soared 8.75 percent to 683 yen on bargain-hunting. SoftBank Group surged 4.22 percent to 6,532 yen and Sony was up 4.11 percent at 8,100 yen. But Fujifilm edged down 0.06 percent to 4,636 yen after a clinical study of anti-flu drug Avigan, developed by its subsidiary, failed to show a clear efficacy in treating coronavirus patients. si/sah/je
|