Investing.com – Japan stocks were higher after the close on Wednesday, as gains in the Gas & Water, Food and Communication sectors led shares higher.
At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.01%.
The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Asahi Glass Co., Ltd. (T:5201), which rose 3.77% or 27.0 points to trade at 743.0 at the close. Meanwhile, Nichirei Corp. (T:2871) added 3.26% or 73.0 points to end at 2315.0 and Taiheiyo Cement Corp. (T:5233) was up 3.18% or 11.0 points to 356.5 in late trade.
The worst performers of the session were JFE Holdings, Inc. (T:5411), which fell 4.33% or 75.5 points to trade at 1670.0 at the close. Kobe Steel, Ltd. (T:5406) declined 3.61% or 40.5 points to end at 1080.0 and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Ltd. (T:5713) was down 3.26% or 51.5 points to 1528.0.
Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 1769 to 1209 and 362 ended unchanged.
Shares in Asahi Glass Co., Ltd. (T:5201) rose to 52-week highs; rising 3.77% or 27.0 to 743.0.
The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was down 2.86% to 19.36.
Crude oil for January delivery was up 1.30% or 0.59 to $45.82 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in February rose 1.39% or 0.66 to hit $47.98 a barrel, while the February Gold contract fell 0.03% or 0.35 to trade at $1190.45 a troy ounce.
USD/JPY was up 0.32% to 112.74, while EUR/JPY rose 0.19% to 119.93.
The US Dollar Index was up 0.15% at 101.13.