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The Japanese market is trading sharply higher on Friday, expending the sharp gains in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The Nikkei 225 is moving well above the 68,500 level, with gains in automakers and technology<\/span> stocks.<\/p>\n The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is up 1,138.06 points or 1.68 percent to 68,881.91, after touching a high of 69,184.55 earlier. Japanese shares ended sharply higher on Thursday.<\/p>\n Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is jumping more than 10 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is losing almost 5 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is edging up 0.2 percent and Honda is also edging up 0.1 percent.<\/p>\n In the tech space, Advantest is advancing more than 4 percent, Screen Holdings is adding almost 3 percent and Tokyo Electron is gaining more than 3 percent.<\/p>\n In the banking sector, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging down 0.5 percent, while Mizuho Financial and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial are edging up 0.1 to 0.5 percent each.<\/p>\n Among the major exporters, Panasonic is gaining almost 2 percent, while Mitsubishi Electric and Canon are edging up 0.3 to 0.5 percent each. Sony is losing almost 2 percent.<\/p>\n Among other major gainers, Sumco is skyrocketing more than 15 percent, Socionext is jumping more than 10 percent, Fujikura is soaring more than 9 percent and Sumitomo Electric Industries is surging more than 8 percent, while Kioxia Holdings and Furukawa Electric are advancing almost 8 percent each. Mitsui Kinzoku is rising almost 7 percent, while Ibiden and Murata Manufacturing are gaining more than 5 percent each. Fanuc, Yaskawa Electric, Nikon and OKUMA are adding almost 5 percent each.<\/p>\n Conversely, Sapporo Holdings is declining more than 4 percent, while Tokio Marine, Seven & I Holdings, Kirin Holdings and Kao are losing almost 3 percent each.<\/p>\n In economic news, Japan’s producer prices rose 7.1 percent on year in June 2026, accelerating from an upwardly revised 6.6 percent increase in the previous month and exceeding market expectations of a 6.8 percent gain. It marked the fastest annual increase since March 2023.<\/p>\n On a monthly basis, producer prices grew 0.4 percent, easing from an upwardly revised 1.1 percent gain in May and marking the slowest monthly growth in four months.<\/p>\n In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the higher 161 yen-range on Friday.<\/p>\n On Wall Street, stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the trading day on Thursday after seeing considerable volatility early in the session. The major averages all moved to the upside after yesterday’s mixed performance, with the Nasdaq leading the charge.<\/p>\n The Nasdaq ended the day just off its high of the session, jumping 336.24 points or 1.3 percent to 26,206.89. The S&P 500 also advanced 60.93 points or 0.8 percent to 7,543.64, while the narrower Dow rose 139.02 points or 0.3 percent to 52,487.41.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the major European markets<\/span> were mixed on the day. The German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index both advanced by 0.9 percent, although the U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index bucked the uptrend and dipped by 0.2 percent.<\/p>\n Crude oil prices tumbled on Thursday following reports that Iran is seeking a deal with the U.S., raising expectations of an end to the ongoing standoff. West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery was down $1.52 or 2.07 percent at $72.00 per barrel. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Market Analysis<\/p>\n<\/div>\n