Japan's Nikkei index hit its highest level in 34 years on Thursday, with chip-related stocks rising, tracking their counterparts on Wall Street, which rose at the end of Wednesday's session.
The Nikkei index is now only 800 points, or about two percent, below its all-time high, which was reached in 1989 and was considered the peak of Japan's so-called bubble economy.
The Nikkei ended Thursday up 1.21 percent at 38,157.94 points, the highest closing level since January 1990. It also recorded the highest level during a trading day in 34 years at 38,188.74 points.
The weak yen, which boosts exporters' profits, supported the Nikkei index amid continued expectations of monetary easing policy, after Japan unexpectedly slid into recession at the end of last year.
Chip-related stocks provided significant support to the Nikkei Index, tracking the Philadelphia Semiconductor Stock Index, which jumped 2.2 percent at the end of Wednesday’s session, exceeding the gains of the three main indexes on Wall Street.
Shares of chip manufacturing equipment giant Tokyo Electron gave the Nikkei index the largest boost, reaching 168 points, after it jumped five percent. SoftBank Group's shares for investing in artificial intelligence also jumped 3.59 percent, pushing the index up 59 points.
The yen fell below the 150 level to the dollar this week, also providing broad support, as the weakness of the currency enhances the value of revenues generated abroad and makes products more competitive.
