Companies Economy International The Buzz Street Sweep Corrections Pre-market Trading After-hours Trading US Stocks Bonds and Interest Rates Currencies Commodities Mutual Funds World Markets Subscribe to Real Money Newsletter Subscribe to Money Magazine Money Magazine Real Estate Taxes Jobs Ask the Expert Money 101 Autos Mutual Funds The Help Desk Loan Center Best Places to Live Subscribe to Money Magazine Ask the Expert Ultimate Guide to Retirement Retirement Calculators Best Funds Best Places to Retire CNNMoney Tech Tumblr Fortune Tech Apple 2.0 Google 24/7 Techmate Tech Talk Questions & Answers Innovation Nation Small Business Video Best Places to Launch Resource Guide Next Little Thing Subscribe to Fortune Magazine Fortune 500 Fortune Tech Fortune Finance Investing Management Executive Interviews Rankings Log in Register Profile Alerts Newsletters My Watchlist
TRADING
CENTER

Japan stocks jump on G-7 pledge to intervene

tokyo_stock_prices.gi.top.jpg By Ben Rooney, staff reporter


NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Stocks in disaster-stricken Japan capped a turbulent week with solid gains Friday after finance ministers from the Group of Seven nations announced a coordinated intervention in the currency market to prevent the yen from rising further.

The Nikkei 225 index, the most prominent measure of stocks traded in Tokyo, climbed 244 points, or 2.7%. For the week, the index was down 10.2%, but has rebounded 7% since suffering the third-worst drubbing in its history on Tuesday.

Officials of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and the European Central Bank said in a statement that they will join with Japan in "concerted intervention in exchange markets."

"As we have long stated, excess volatility and disorderly movements in exchange rates have adverse implications for economic and financial stability," the ministers said in the statement. "We will monitor exchange markets closely and will cooperate as appropriate."

The yen, considered a safe haven by global investors, has been driven higher in recent days by uncertainty and speculation that more cash will flow into Japan as it rebuilds.

But a strong yen is a serious threat to Japan's export-driven economy, since it undermines profits for Japanese companies that do business overseas.

The Japanese stock market has been roiled by uncertainty this week, with investors struggling to comprehend the implications of last week's devastating earthquake and tsunami, and the resulting crisis at a crippled nuclear power plant.

The Nikkei fell 1.4% in Thursday's session, giving back some of Wednesday's gains. On Tuesday, the index plunged 10.6%, marking the third worst one-day plunge in the Nikkei's history.

After a massive earthquake and tsunami devastated the northern part of the country, workers at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant have been struggling to cool damaged reactors.

The Tokyo Electric Power Company said early Friday that water dumped by helicopters, fire trucks and police water cannons was "somewhat effective" in cooling the crippled reactors, housed in a facility located about 138 miles north of Tokyo. (CNN.com Japan coverage)

In the currency market, the yen stabilized against the U.S. dollar Thursday after surging to an all-time high on Wednesday. The retreat came amid speculation that the Bank of Japan will soon intervene in the market to curb the yen's rise by selling the currency.

For an economy facing a tough road ahead, a weaker currency would be a good thing. A stronger home currency would make Japanese goods more expensive in overseas markets, to the detriment of Japan's manufacturing industry.

Under normal circumstances, intervention would be frowned on by other central bankers.

Other Asian markets joined Japan in ending higher Friday. The Hang Seng was up 0.1%, while the Shanghai Composite advanced 0.3%. European stocks opened higher.

In the United States, stocks closed broadly higher Thursday, after two days of heavy losses on Wall Street, as investors cheered an upbeat outlook from economic bellwether FedEx (FDX, Fortune 500). U.S. futures pointed to a higher open Friday.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange resumes trading Tuesday, after taking Monday off for the vernal equinox holiday.

-- CNNMoney's Charles Riley contributed to this report.  To top of page

NOLA's green renaissance
Five years after Katrina destroyed the city, New Orleans is rebuilt and flowering into a 'green' hub of the South. Play
Exotic cars for eco-millionaires
Companies that make some of the most expensive cars in the world are working to clean up their acts with more fuel efficient dream machines. More
Best apps for spending smart
Want to make your financial life easier? These 11 apps offer calculators, cheap-gas finders, ticket avoiders, deal locators and more. More
Overnight Avg Rate Latest Change Last Week
30 yr fixed4.76%4.82%
15 yr fixed4.00%4.08%
5/1 ARM3.37%3.48%
30 yr refi4.77%4.83%
15 yr refi4.01%4.08%
Rate data provided
by Bankrate.com
View rates in your area
 
Find personalized rates:
Markets Last Change % Change
Dow 11,774.59 161.29 1.39%
Nasdaq 2,636.05 19.23 0.73%
S&P 500 1,273.72 16.84 1.34%
Treasuries 3.25 0.04 1.12%
U.S. Dollar 1.41 0.01 0.53%
Data as of 6:49am ET
Company Price Change % Change
Citigroup Inc 4.45 0.06 1.37%
Bank of America Corp... 13.98 0.29 2.12%
Cisco Systems Inc 17.00 -0.05 -0.29%
General Electric Com... 19.22 0.27 1.42%
Ford Motor Co 14.26 0.08 0.56%
Data as of Mar 17
Privacy Policy

Sections

Diet Coke moved past Pepsi to claim the second position in the cola wars. Coke -- the real thing -- retains first place. More

Potassium iodide demand is spiking in the U.S., but consumers should be wary of products that falsely claim to protect against radiation or are not FDA-approved, says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. More

Firefox 4, Internet Explorer 9 and Chrome 10 all debut this month. The features are pretty similar, but there are key differences that separate them. More

In the wake of the massive Japan earthquake, Taylor Devices hopes its shock absorbers can help make buildings safer. More

Tip 1: Chop your mortage. By Refinaning a 30-year loan to a 15-year fixed, and you could save $50,000 in nine years. More

Please create a screen name to access this feature.

Screen name (Select one with 3-12 characters; Numbers and letters only)


Forgot password

Enter your e-mail address below and we will send you an e-mail with a link and code to reset your password.

Already have the reset code?

Password selection

E-mail

Reset code

New password

Log in & let's get started!

E-mail

Password

Forgot password?


Not a member yet?

Sign up now for a free account

Sign up or log in

Screen name

Select one with 3-12 characters;
Numbers and letters only

E-mail

Make sure you typed it correctly.
You will receive an e-mail to validate your account

Password

Make it 6-10 characters, no spaces

We're Sorry!

This service is temporarily unavailable. Please try again soon.


 

 


Thanks!

Please check your e-mail and click the link to confirm your membership. Then, you'll be ready to participate in all activities and conversations on our site.

Go to your Profile page


Newsletters
© 2011 Cable News Network. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Privacy Policy. Ad choices .
Home Portfolio Calculators Contact Us Newsletters Podcasts RSS Mobile Widgets Site Map User Preferences Advertise with Us
Magazine Customer Service Download Fortune Lists Reprints Career Opportunities Special Sections Conferences Business Leader Council
Search Jobs Real Estate Search Interest & Mortgage Rates
Market indexes are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer
LIBOR Warning: Neither BBA Enterprises Limited, nor the BBA LIBOR Contributor Banks, nor Reuters, can be held liable for any irregularity or inaccuracy of BBA LIBOR. Disclaimer.
Morningstar: © 2011 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Disclaimer
The Dow Jones IndexesSM are proprietary to and distributed by Dow Jones & Company, Inc. and have been licensed for use. All content of the Dow Jones IndexesSM © 2011 is proprietary to Dow Jones & Company, Inc
Chicago Mercantile Association. The market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved.
FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2011. All rights reserved. Most stock quote data provided by BATS.