Japan Stocks Climb After Wall Street Rally

Japan stocks pushed higher Thursday morning, after the U.S. markets posted their best one-day gains of this year overnight. The Nikkei Average climbed 2.2%, with the broader Topix up 2.5%. The yen weakened significantly, trading at �118.87 against the dollar from �117.07 in the previous day. Stocks advanced across the board, with auto makers among the biggest gainers. Mazda Motor Corp. soared 4.1%, Toyota Motor Corp. spiked 3.8%, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. jumped 3.7%, and Honda Motor Co., Ltd. improved by 2.9%. Among tech exporters, camera maker Olympus Corp. leapt 3.3%, electronics giant Toshiba Corporation climbed 3.1%, and semiconductor firm Renesas Electronics Corporation headed 3% higher. In Australia, stocks also tracked the overnight rally in the U.S. markets, with the S&P/ASX 200 rising 1.5%.