Ceremony to mark opening of financial markets for the first time in 2007
(4 Jan 2007) Tokyo Stock Exchange 1. Close up of woman in kimono striking bell 2. Wide of Tokyo Stock Exchange 3. Close up of screen showing woman in kimono striking bell, pan to audience attending opening ceremony 4. Taizo Nishimuro, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Tokyo Stock Exchange on podium 5. Women wearing kimono 6. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Taizo Nishimuro, Chairman and CEO of Tokyo Stock Exchange. "The Japanese economy has posted record profits in corporate performance and sustains strong economic performance. The boom did not directly lead to a Japanese market recovery and that continues to be a frustration. Meanwhile, the market volume maintained its high performance and I believe that we are surely building up the energy for a rising trend." 7. Media 8. Wide of dignitaries on stage rhythmically clapping to mark the start of trading, zoom out and pan to audience and stockbrokers, zoom in to audience 9. Various of Tokyo Stock Exchange 10. Tilt up of women in kimono lining up in front of screens showing stock price index 11. Close up of screen showing stock price index 12. Various of screens 13. Close pan of women in kimono 14. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Yuka Okada, Vox pop: "I think the economic boom will continue to be good like it was last year." 15. SOUNDBITE (Japanese) Hiroko Ogura, Securities Firm Employee: "I wish it would go back to when the times were good. Last year seemed a little weak." 16. Various exteriors of Tokyo Stock Exchange STORYLINE Japanese stocks rose on Thursday morning as the country's financial markets reopened after the New Year's holidays. Japan's markets were open for a half day session following the break. The increases were led by gains in exporter and bank issues as the US dollar and euro strengthened against the yen. Taizo Nishimuro, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Tokyo Stock Exchange said he was confident the Japanese economy would perform well in 2007. "The Japanese economy has posted record profits in corporate performance and sustains strong economic performance," he said. "The boom did not directly lead to a Japanese market recovery and that continues to be a frustration. Meanwhile, the market volume maintained its high performance and I believe that we are surely building up the energy for a rising trend," he added in an address to traders. The Nikkei Stock Average of 225 issues closed at 17,353.67 points on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on Thursday, up 127.84 points, or 0.74 percent, from last Friday. It was the Nikkei's highest close since April 21 at 17,403.96 points. On December 29th, the last trading day for 2006, the index added 1.02 points, or 0.01 percent, to finish a half-day session at 17,225.83 points, the Nikkei's highest close since May 9. The broader Topix index, which includes all shares on the exchange's first section, rose 17.88 points, or 1.06 percent, to 1,698.95 points. The Topix had risen 2.16 points, or 0.12 percent, to 1,681.07 points last Friday. Stocks opened higher as traders bought exporter, bank and retailer shares. Toyota, the world's second-largest car maker, hit its all-time high of 8,140 yen (68.20 US dollars) supported by the stronger dollar and strong December sales in the US. Other car manufacturers such as Nissan and Honda were also higher. In currencies, the US dollar was trading at 119.36 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 9 a.m. (0000 GMT) on Thursday, up from 119.35 yen from late Wednesday in New York. The euro rose slightly to 1.3166 US dollars from 1.3165 US dollars. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
