Tokyo, Oct 6 (AP) Japan's Nikkei stock index jumped nearly 5 per cent on Monday, and the yen weakened after its ruling party chose an ultra-conservative as its leader and likely first woman prime minister.
Other Asian markets were mostly higher. US futures climbed, and oil gained about USD 1 a barrel.
The Liberal Democrats elected Sanae Takaichi, an ally of the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, as their leader, likely ensuring she will carry on with his market-friendly policies. Takaichi, 64, admires former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and backed Abe's ultra-conservative vision for the country.
She is likely to become prime minister because the LDP has the most seats in the lower house, although not a majority. It chooses the prime minister, and opposition groups are splintered.
Takaichi faces a host of challenges that have bedevilled her predecessors, BMI of Fitch Solutions said in a commentary. That includes “boosting Japan's economic competitiveness and strengthening the country's technological and industrial base and adopting measures to mitigate the impact of Japan's ageing and declining population amid a colossal public debt burden.”
Still, investors, especially non-Japanese ones, were pleased, said Neil Newman, head of strategy at Astris Advisory Japan.
“Obviously, investors like what she has been saying and certainly today, judging by the number of stocks that moved and which stocks moved, it seems like it's pretty much led by foreigners so far," Newman said.
Defence-related shares got a big boost, given Takaichi's hawkish stance. Stock in Kawasaki Heavy Industries leapt 9.2 per cent and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries soared 11.1 per cent.
An unconfirmed report that US President Donald Trump might be considering ways to reduce the cost of his higher tariffs on auto parts and other materials for US manufacturers helped automakers' share prices. Toyota Motor Corp.'s shares jumped 4.9 per cent in Tokyo and Honda Motor Co. gained 4.1 per cent.
The Nikkei 225 index rose 4.8 per cent to 47,944.76, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index sank 0.6 per cent to 26,991.51.
The yen weakened against the US dollar, on expectations that Takaichi will boost spending, likely adding to inflationary pressures. The dollar rose to 150.14 Japanese yen from 149.33 yen. The euro slipped to USD 1.1704 from USD 1.1730.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.1 per cent to 8,981.40.
Markets in mainland China, Taiwan and South Korea were closed for holidays.
On Friday, most US stocks ticked higher, adding to Wall Street records.
The S&P 500 edged up by less than 0.1 per cent to close out its seventh winning week in the last nine, ending at 6,715.79. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.5 per cent to 46,758.28. Both added to their all-time highs set the day before.
The Nasdaq composite lost an early gain and slipped 0.3 per cent from its own record, to 22,780.51.
The shutdown of the US government, which began Oct. 8, delayed the release of the monthly jobs update showing how many jobs employers created and destroyed.
Such information is particularly important now, given how much on Wall Street is riding on the expectation that the job market is continuing to slow by enough to get the Federal Reserve to keep cutting interest rates.
Past shutdowns of the US government have tended not to hurt the economy or stock market much, and the thinking is that this one could be similar, even if President Donald Trump has threatened large-scale firings of federal workers this time around.
Reports came in mixed on activity for US businesses in the health care, real estate and other services industries. One from the Institute for Supply Management said growth is stalling, while another from S&P Global said it's still growing slowly.
In other dealings early Monday, US benchmark crude oil gained 99 cents to USD 61.87 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, added 99 cents to USD 65.52 per barrel.
A group of countries that are part of the OPEC+ alliance of oil-exporting countries agreed during the weekend to a small boost in oil production, citing a steady global economic outlook. That alleviated fears of an oversupply.
The group said after a virtual meeting on Sunday that it will raise oil production by 137,000 barrels per day in November, the same amount it announced for October. The group has been raising output slightly in a series of boosts all year, after announcing cuts in 2023 and 2024. (AP) SKS
SKS