Nikkei 225 Soars 10% After Plunge: Japan Stock Market Rebound

Tokyo, Aug 6 (AP) Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 share index soared as much as 10.7 per cent early Tuesday, a day after it plunged the most in 37 years.

The index gave up some of those gains as it wavered throughout the day but closed 10.2 per cent higher at 34,675.46. Other Asian markets also were higher after sharp losses on Wall Street that were dramatic but not on the same scale as Monday's 12.4 per cent nosedive in Tokyo.

Many shares rose by double-digit percentages similar to their losses a day before, with automaker Toyota Motor Corp. rocketed 12.8 per cent.

Computer chip maker Tokyo Electron jumped 16.6 per cent, Honda Motor Co. advanced 14.7 per cent and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group was up 5.8 per cent.

The losses of the past several sessions followed a move by the Bank of Japan last week to raise its main interest rate from nearly zero. Such a move helps boost the value of the Japanese yen, but it also led traders to scramble out of deals where they had borrowed money for virtually no cost in Japan and invested it elsewhere around the world.

Various factors combined to cause Monday's carnage, according to Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management, likening Tuesday's bounce to a “lifeboat.”

“As always with the market, take this to heart: Yesterday's misery often turns into today's punchline. The swift twists and turns of trading can transform what seemed like a dire situation into a fleeting memory, one that's often laughed about in trading rooms the next day,” he said.

The Nikkei is now up 7.7 per cent from a year ago, but more than 9 per cent below its level three months ago. Its biggest ever percentage gain was 14.2 per cent in October 2008. (AP)