Tokyo stocks hit 6-month high on Wall Street gain, weak yen

Tokyo stocks rose for the third straight trading day on Monday, sending a key index to the highest closing level in six months following Friday's gain on Wall Street. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) gained 237.41 points, or 1.54 percent, from Friday to 15,619.13, its highest closing since May 22. The broader Tokyo Stock Price Index, which includes all shares on the market's First Section on the TSE, was also up 11.04 points, or 0.88 percent, to 1,259.61, with 31 of 33 subindexes ending in positive territory. On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average ended with a new record above 16,000, while the the broader SP 500 recorded its first close above 1,800 after encouraging news on the job market. The yen's depreciation against the US dollar and the euro also prompted investors to buy export-oriented issues in Tokyo. The weak yen supports exports by making Japanese products more competitive overseas and increase the value of repatriated overseas earning. In the currency market, at 4:40 p.m. (0740GMT), the US dollar traded at around a six-month high of JPY101.82-84 against JPY 101.15-25 in New York and JPY 100.99-101.01 in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Friday.