Nikkei Average Briefly Retakes 38,000 in Morning Trade

Yomiuri Shimbun file photo

Tokyo (Jiji Press)—The Nikkei 225 stock average retook 38,000 at one point in Tokyo trading on Tuesday morning, helped by overnight gains in U.S. stocks.

The key Japanese index finished the morning session at 37,943.23, up 546.71 points, or 1.46 pct, from Monday, after crossing the 38,000 threshold for the first time since Feb. 27 on an intraday basis.

A weaker yen against the dollar also spurred stock buying. At noon, the dollar stood at ¥149.67-67 , up from ¥148.84-86 at 5 p.m. Monday.

Major trading houses were particularly buoyant after it was revealed that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. had raised its stakes in them.