Japan’s Nikkei 225 soars more than 10% after record plunge

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 share index soared as much as 10.7% early Tuesday, a day after it plunged a near record 12.4%.

The index yielded some of those early gains to trade 8.7% higher at 34,211.83 by late morning. The gains followed sharp losses on Wall Street that were dramatic but not on the same scale as Monday’s debacle in Tokyo.

The Nikkei is now close to the level it was at a year ago. Its biggest ever percentage gain was 14.2% in October 2008.

Shares rose by double-digit percentages similar to their losses a day before, with Toyota Motor Corp. up nearly 12% by late morning.

Computer chip maker Tokyo Electron jumped almost 12%, Honda Motor Co. advanced 16% and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group was up 7.6%.

The losses of the past several sessions followed a move by the Bank of Japan last week to raise its main interest rate from nearly zero. Such a move helps boost the value of the Japanese yen, but it also led traders to scramble out of deals where they borrowed money for virtually no cost in Japan and invested it elsewhere around the world.

Various factors combined to cause Monday’s carnage, according to Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management, likening Tuesday’s bounce to a “lifeboat.”

“As always with the market, take this to heart: Yesterday’s misery often turns into today’s punchline. The swift twists and turns of trading can transform what seemed like a dire situation into a fleeting memory, one that’s often laughed about in trading rooms the next day,” he said.