Japan stocks higher at close of trade; Nikkei 225 up 0.74%

Japan stocks were higher after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Precision Instruments, Shipbuilding, and Banking sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.74%.

The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Recruit Holdings Co Ltd (TYO:6098), which rose 3.65% or 184.00 points to trade at 5,220.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Mitsubishi Corp. (TYO:8058) added 3.18% or 222.00 points to end at 7,196.00 and Tokyu Corp. (TYO:9005) was up 3.02% or 54.00 points to 1,840.50 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Co Ltd (TYO:4506), which fell 4.24% or 22.50 points to trade at 508.50 at the close. Matsui Securities Co., Ltd. (TYO:8628) declined 3.03% or 25.00 points to end at 801.00 and Meiji Holdings Co., Ltd. (TYO:2269) was down 2.61% or 98.00 points to 3,652.00.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2302 to 1303, and 255 ended unchanged.

Shares in Recruit Holdings Co Ltd (TYO:6098) rose to 52-week highs, gaining 3.65% or 184.00 to 5,220.00.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was down 1.44% to 17.74, a new 3-month low.

Crude oil for October delivery was up 0.22% or 0.18 to $81.81 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in November rose 0.14% or 0.12 to hit $85.36 a barrel, while the December Gold Futures contract unchanged 0.00% or 0.00 to trade at $1,973.00 a troy ounce.

USD/JPY was down 0.33% to 145.76, while EUR/JPY fell 0.53% to 158.90.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.11% at 103.21.