Japanese Stocks Surge, End Thursday Trading Up 1.81%

Most Japanese stocks opened Thursday trading in Tokyo well above the previous day's closing prices and maintained those gains for the entire trading day. The dollar's rise against the Japanese Yen and positive data about the U.S. job market fueled the rise of major Japanese exporters like Sony Corporation SNE and Canon, Inc. CAJ. The Nikkei 225 ended Thursday trading in Tokyo up 180.47 points, 1.81%, at 10,168.52. The day's range for the Japanese stock index was between 10,143.08 and 10,187.59, with the index spending the entire trading session above yesterday's closing level. Investors who would like to invest in Japanese equities should consider the iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund EWJ, which uses a representative sampling strategy to try to track the MSCI Japan index. Those who are bullish on Japanese stocks should take a look at the ProShares Ultra MSCI Japan Index Fund EZJ, which seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to twice the daily performance of the MSCI Japan Index. If you think that Japanese stocks are headed lower, consider the ProShares UltraShort MSCI Japan Fund EWV, which seeks daily investment results, before fees and expenses, that correspond to twice the inverse of the daily performance of the MSCI Japan index. Read more from Benzinga's ETFs news.