The dollar spiked to three-month highs against the yen and futures indicated a higher open for the benchmark Nikkei 225 index following a snap election in Japan on Sunday.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s ruling coalition secured a two-thirds “super majority” after winning 312 out of 465 seats available at Sunday’s election, Reuters said, citing local media. Abe’s solid win at the polls points to a continuation of his Abenomics program, which includes the use of hyper-easy monetary policy.
Following the news, the dollar surged to trade at 113.88 yen at 7:00 a.m. HK/SIN — its highest levels in three months.
Stateside, stocks closed higher on Friday after the U.S. Senate passed a budget measure late on Thursday. The move unlocked reconciliation, which enables Republicans to pass a tax bill with a simple 51-vote majority in the Senate.
The Dow Jones industrial average tacked on 0.71 percent, or 165.59 points, to close at a record 23,328.63. Other major indexes touched record highs during the session: The S&P 500 tacked on 0.51 percent, or 13.11 points, to close at 2,575.21 and the Nasdaq advanced 0.36 percent, or 23.986 points, to close at 6,629.053.
