Japan's Nikkei jumps after Trump's comments raise bets for Middle East war de-escalation
TOKYO, April 1 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average jumped more than 3% on Wednesday, supported by hopes of de-escalation in the Middle East after U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. could end the Iran war in two to three weeks.
The Nikkei .N225 rose 3.49% to 52,843.86 as of 0018 GMT, and the broader Topix .TOPX was up 3.15% to 3,608.22.
Trump said the United States could end its military attacks on Iran within two to three weeks and that Tehran did not have to make a deal as a prerequisite for the conflict winding down.
In Japan, chip and artificial intelligence-related shares led the gains, with Advantest 6857.T and SoftBank Group 9984.T jumping 7% and 6%, respectively. Tokyo Electron 8035.T rose 3.55%.
All but two of the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry sub-indexes rose. The shipping sector .ISHIPT> and mining sector .IMING.T fell 0.95% and 1.26%, respectively.
