Japan stocks higher at close of trade; Nikkei 225 up 0.25%

Investing.com – Japan stocks were higher after the close on Tuesday, as gains in the Steel, Retail and Paper&Pulp sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 0.25% to hit a new 3-months high.

The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Kobe Steel, Ltd. (TYO:5406), which rose 5.81% or 59.00 points to trade at 1,075.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Teijin Ltd. (TYO:3401) added 3.52% or 50.00 points to end at 1,472.00 and Inpex Corp. (TYO:1605) was up 3.01% or 45.00 points to 1,540.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Nisshin Seifun Group Inc. (TYO:2002), which fell 2.23% or 35.00 points to trade at 1,536.00 at the close. Yamato Holdings Co., Ltd. (TYO:9064) declined 1.90% or 44.00 points to end at 2,274.00 and Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd. (TYO:3863) was down 1.60% or 17.00 points to 1,046.00.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2266 to 1254 and 303 ended unchanged.

Shares in Kobe Steel, Ltd. (TYO:5406) rose to 3-years highs; up 5.81% or 59.00 to 1,075.00.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was up 1.89% to 16.19.

Crude oil for April delivery was up 0.20% or 0.16 to $80.62 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in May rose 0.21% or 0.18 to hit $86.36 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 0.15% or 2.75 to trade at $1,855.25 a troy ounce.

USD/JPY was down 0.11% to 135.76, while EUR/JPY unchanged 0.00% to 145.12.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.19% at 104.13.