Nikkei climbs to 18-mth high

The recent weeks have shed positive light on the Japanese markets. Japan s Nikkei climbed 1.4 percent to close at an 18-month high for the third straight day, buoyed by the yen s weakness after it hit a three-month low against the dollar and as resource shares gained on a rise in commodities prices. Positive sentiment sparked by an improvement in Japanese business morale as well as a strong debut by Dai-ichi Life Insurance, which opened 14 percent above its $11 billion initial public offering, also fed buying, market players said. The benchmark Nikkei rose 154.46 points to 11,244.40, its highest close ...

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