Japan’s Nikkei share average inched up on Wednesday, taking cues from a bounce by Wall Street shares, with the market taking China’s growth data in stride since they were roughly in line with expectations.
The Nikkei was up 0.3 per cent at 17,007.24 points, ensconced in a tight range through the session.
“All three Wall Street indexes rebounded overnight and crude oil prices are rising, and these are supportive factors for the market,” said Masahiro Ichikawa, senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Asset Management.
Wall Street advanced on Tuesday to give the S&P 500 its best day this month on the heels of solid earnings reports from names such as UnitedHealth and Netflix.
“On the other hand, steady selling pressure around the 17,000 threshold is preventing a further advance and keeping the Nikkei in range,” Ichikawa said.
China’s economy grew 6.7 per cent in the third quarter from a year earlier, steady from the previous quarter and in line with market expectations, as increased government spending and a property boom offset stubbornly weak exports.
Shares of Sharp Corp rose 9.2 per cent following a report that the company expects to post an operating profit of about ¥40 billion this fiscal year helped by cost cuts and a withdrawal from its loss-making North American TV business.
Other big gainers included food processor Maruha Nichiro Corp which rose as much as 6.7 per cent after the Nikkei said its April-September operating profit likely doubled from a year earlier, helped as a stronger yen reduced import costs.
Terumo Corp was up 2 per cent after two US companies said they will sell some of their medical devices to the medical equipment maker.
Abbott Laboratories , which is in the process of buying St. Jude Medical Inc for $25 billion, said the companies would sell some of their medical devices to Terumo Corp for about $1.12 billion.
The broader Topix gained 0.15 per cent to 1,358.58 and the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 added 0.15 per cent to 12,155.36.