Tokyo shares up at break on weak yen

Tokyo stocks jumped Monday morning as a weaker yen lifted exporters with traders buoyed by upbeat Japanese growth figures and hopes for US President-elect Donald Trump's administration.

"The fact that the Japanese economy is in good shape is obviously a boost for stocks," said Masaaki Yamaguchi, an equity market strategist at Nomura.

"The yen weakening further is adding momentum to the move," he told Bloomberg News.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 1.53 percent, or 266.05 points, to 17,640.84 by the break, while the broader Topix index of all-first section issues rose 1.44 percent, or 19.83 points, to 1,398.11.

Official data showed Japan's economy grew a better-than-expected 0.5 percent in the third quarter as exports offset slack consumer spending.

Expectations for the Trump presidency also held up investor sentiment.

"The Trump-risk has subsided considerably, with odds looking likely for the president-elect to opt for more realistic policy measures," said Shoji Hirakawa, chief global strategist at Tokai Tokyo Research Institute.

Expectations that planned infrastructure spending will fan inflation have lit a fire under the dollar as dealers bet the Federal Reserve eventually will have to hike borrowing costs more aggressively to cap inflation.

The greenback hit a five-month high of 107.58 yen before coming off slightly to sit at 107.41 yen.

A weaker yen is good news for the profitability and competitiveness of Japan's exporters.

Hitachi jumped 3.68 percent to 585.2 yen, Toshiba was up 3.16 percent at 397.7 yen, and Nissan surged 3.19 percent to 996 yen.

Banks also extended gains, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group up 1.20 percent at 615.2 yen.

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