Nikkei Rises by Over 300 Points in Wake of OPEC Decision

The Tokyo Stock Exchange Nikkei index (Nikkei 225) reached the highest level of the past 11 months on Thursday against the backdrop of the decision on oil production limiting.

TOKYO (Sputnik) – On Wednesday, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed to impose an oil production ceiling totaling 32.5 million barrels per day. Non-OPEC countries that expressed a desire to participate in the agreement, including Russia and Azerbaijan, are expected to curtail oil production by a total of 600,000 barrels daily.

Nikkei went up by over 300 points in the first half of Thursday, market data showed, reaching 18,615.55 which is the highest mark in the past 11 months.

The Japanese yen was at 114.68 per dollar on Thursday, the highest level in the past nine months.

Following the Wednesday OPEC decision, oil prices started to grow sharply. February futures on Brent oil were at $51.63 per barrel at 18:12 GMT on Wednesday. January futures on the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude increased by 8.78 percent up to $49.2 per barrel.