TOKYO, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed sharply higher Monday as the market mood was bolstered by hopes for an antiviral COVID-19 treatment which has showed some positive results in the United States as well as data showing China's vehicle market expanded rapidly in June.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average gained 493.93 points, or 2.22 percent, from Friday to close the day at 22,784.74.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, gained 37.82 points, or 2.46 percent, to finish at 1,573.02.
The market here got off to a bright start, local brokers said, inheriting a positive lead from Wall Street late last week following Gilead Sciences Inc.'s antiviral drug remdesivir showing reduced risk of death in patients severely affected by the COVID-19 respiratory disease.
While the firm said further clinical trials were necessary, the news bolstered sentiment in the U.S. which was inherited here, market analysts said, helped in part by the Japanese government having already approved the use of the drug domestically.
"The news fueled investors' risk appetite after shares recently remained top-heavy on a rebound in coronavirus infections in Japan," Makoto Sengoku, a market analyst at the Tokai Tokyo Research Institute, was quoted as saying.
The market also got a boost from Chinese shares' solid performance, particularly of tech-related issues which buoyed their counterparts in Tokyo, investment analysts said.
They added that automakers here gained on data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showing that the Chinese vehicle market had expanded rapidly on year in June.
As such, Honda Motor Co. accelerated 5.9 percent, while Mazda Motor Corp. soared 8.8 percent. Mitsubishi Motors Corp., meanwhile, climbed 6.2 percent by the close.
On hopes for increased demand for fuel and energy-linked resources, associated issues found favor, with Mitsubishi Materials adding 4.4 percent, while Mitsui Mining and Smelting advanced 4.6 percent. Exploration giant Inpex, meanwhile, ended the day 6.0 percent higher.
By the close of play, mining, iron and steel, and air transportation-linked issues comprised those that gained the most, and issues that rose trounced those that fell by 2,032 to 126 on the First Section, while 13 ended the day unchanged.
On the main section on Monday, 1.215 billion shares changed hands, dropping from Friday's volume of 1.337 billion shares.
The turnover on the first trading day of the week came to 2.138 trillion yen (19.973 billion U.S. dollars). Enditem
