Japan stocks rise as government reportedly set to propose record budget

Tokyo, Japan

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Asia-Pacific stocks were mostly up Thursday, with several markets remaining closed for Boxing Day.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.12% to close at 8,220.9 while the Topix added 1.20% to close at 2,766.78, a day after a report said the country was preparing a record $735 billion budget for its fiscal year starting in April. The budget will account for increased social security and debt-servicing expenses, a draft reviewed by Reuters revealed.

Additionally on Wednesday, Bank of Japan’s Governor Kazuo Ueda said that “Japan’s economy will move closer to sustainable and stable 2 percent inflation [in 2025], accompanied by wage increases.”

The 10-year Japan government bond yield rose 1.3 basis points to 1.078%, while the yen strengthened to 157.16 against the dollar on Thursday, signaling the market expects the bank could undertake interest rate hikes.

Shares of Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda rose 6.58% and 3.84% respectively. Both companies had begun official negotiations to merge at the start of the week, which could create the world’s third-largest carmaker by sales.

Shares of Japan Airlines, meanwhile, closed 0.24% lower after a cyberattack caused delays to both domestic and international flights. Its systems have since been restored to normal.

South Korea’s Kospi slid 0.44% to close at 2,429.67 while the Kosdaq lost 0.66% to close at 675.64. The country’s main opposition Democratic Party has submitted a bill to impeach acting President Han Duck-soo, with voting on it due Friday, according to news agency Yonhap.

Alibaba Group Holding is close to finalizing an agreement to combine its South Korean business with E-Mart’s e-commerce platform in order to strengthen its position in the country’s rapidly growing online retail market, Bloomberg reported, citing sources. Shares of E-Mart closed 5.45% higher.

China’s CSI 300 rose slightly higher to close at 3,987.48 as the World Bank upgraded the country’s gross domestic product growth forecast for 2024 and 2025, reflecting recent policy adjustments. It now expects China’s GDP to grow 4.9% in 2024 compared with its previous projection of 4.8%  In 2025, China’s GDP is expected to come in at 4.5%, higher than the organization’s prior forecast of 4.1%.

Efforts to stabilize and stem the declines of China’s real estate market will persist in 2025, China’s government announced Wednesday. The measures will include controlling the supply of commercial housing to optimize supply.

Singapore’s manufacturing output increased 8.5% in November compared to the year before, fueled by strong performance in the electronics sector, marking the fifth consecutive month of growth. However, the reading fell short of a 10% growth forecast by Reuters. On a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, the country’s manufacturing output contracted 0.4%, compared to Reuters’ expectations of a 0.8% expansion.

Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong markets were closed for the Boxing Day holiday.

Overnight in the U.S., markets were closed for Christmas. Stocks jumped Tuesday on Christmas Eve as the market pulled off back-to-back gains in the holiday week.

The S&P 500 added 1.1% to 6,040.04, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 390.08 points, or 0.91%, to 43,297.03. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.35% to 20,031.13, helped by a 7.4% jump in Tesla shares.

Tuesday marked the start of the seasonal Santa Claus rally, which happens in the last five trading days of the year and the first two in January. 

— CNBC’s Yun Li and Sean Conlon contributed to this story.