Stock Market Today: Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index Hits Record Close as Markets Track Wall Street Rally

Currency traders work at the screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) links and the exchange rate between the U.S. dollar and the South Korean won in the currency trading room of KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares rose broadly on Tuesday, with Tokyo’s benchmark hitting a new record high, as benchmarks on Wall Street reached more milestones.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 2.0% to close at a record high of 41,580.17, briefly hitting its highest intraday trading level ever.

Technology-related stocks led the gains, with computer chip maker Tokyo Electron rising 3.8% and chip testing equipment maker Advantest up 4.1%. Precision tool maker Disco Corp. rose 2.5% and Shin-Etsu Chemical, which supplies silicon for chips, among other things, rose 2.7%.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.9% to 7,829.70. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.3% to 2,864.85. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.3% to 17,577.60, while the Shanghai Composite rose 1.3% to 2,959.74.

“Risk appetite is likely to remain more muted ahead of the Federal Reserve Chairman’s testimony and the key US inflation data release this week,” IG Market Analyst Yeap Jun Rong said in a commentary.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both hit record highs. The S&P 500 rose 0.1% to 5,572.85 and the Nasdaq closed up 0.3% at 18,403.74. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 0.1% at 39,344.79.

Wall Street indexes have been steadily rising in value in recent months, helping the benchmark S&P 500 index break 35 records so far this year.

Gains from technology stocks, including several chipmakers, tempered declines in communications services, energy and other sectors of the S&P 500. Nvidia rose 1.9%, Broadcom added 2.5% and Advanced Micro Devices closed with a gain of 3.9%.

Specialty glass maker Corning rose 12% on Monday, the biggest gain on the market, after raising its revenue forecast.

Embattled planemaker Boeing rose 0.5% after the company pleaded guilty to criminal fraud charges stemming from two crashes of 737 Max jetliners that killed 346 people. The government ruled that the company had violated an agreement that had shielded it from prosecution for more than three years.

Entertainment giant Paramount Global fell 5.3%, the biggest drop among S&P 500 stocks, after the company agreed to merge with Skydance.

Traders are looking ahead to several earnings reports this week, including updates from Delta Air Lines on Thursday.

JPMorgan, Citigroup and Wells Fargo are scheduled to report earnings Friday. The latest updates for banks could give Wall Street a clearer picture of how consumers are coping with increased debt and whether banks are worried about payments and potential defaults.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell addresses Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday. The central bank has kept its benchmark interest rate at its highest level in more than two decades in an effort to curb inflation.

The Fed’s goal is to cool inflation to 2% without slowing economic growth too much. Inflation is still weighing on consumers, but it’s down significantly from its peak two years ago. Economic growth has slowed this year but remains relatively strong amid a solid labor market and consumer spending.

“The first day of testimony is always the most important day, because that’s when we get the general tone and the key messages. Some expect Powell to sound cautious about the inflation trajectory and tell US politicians to be patient until the Fed gathers enough evidence that inflation is on a solid path towards its 2% target,” said Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote Bank.

The central bank will get more updates on consumer inflation on Thursday. Wall Street expects the latest government report to show inflation falling to 3.1% in June from 3.3% in May.

A report on wholesale inflation is expected on Friday, before costs are passed on to consumers.

Treasury yields were relatively stable in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.27% from 4.28% Friday night.

In energy trading, U.S. benchmark crude rose 8 cents to $82.41 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 9 cents to $85.84 a barrel.

In currency trading, the US dollar rose slightly from 160.80 yen to 160.90 Japanese yen.

The euro cost $1.0831, little changed from $1.0827.