Japan's Nikkei 225 index hits a record high close of 40,913.65

Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock index has closed at a fresh record high of 40,913.65, pushing past its most recent record close set in March on heavy buying of automaker and technology shares. The index gained 0.8%. The gains followed an overnight rally on Wall Street, where the S&P 500 and tech-heavy Nasdaq also hit fresh records. Both foreign and domestic investors have piled into the Japanese market in recent months even as the economy has slowed. Part of the attraction is the weakness of the Japanese yen, which is trading at 34-year lows against the dollar. The Nikkei 225's all-time high during intraday trading is 41,087.75, set on March 22.