P.M. BRIEFING : Stocks Surge on Tokyo Market

Stock prices, boosted by the Japanese yen’s strength against the U.S. dollar, surged in active trading today with the key Nikkei average inching past the 32,000-point level for the first time since mid-March.

The blue-chip Nikkei Stock Average of 225 selected issues, which gained 531.88 points Friday, added another 530.51 points to close at 32,042.65.

It was the average’s first close above the 32,000 level since March 16, when the average finished at 32,616.44.

An estimated 800 million shares changed hands, compared with 626 million shares Friday.

Advances outpaced declines 761 to 225, while 137 issues remained unchanged.

Dealers said foreign investors were buying heavily because of the increasing value of the Japanese yen. “As the yen gains on the dollar, they don’t have to worry about losing money on the exchange rate,” said Kazuhiro Maekawa of Barclays de Zoete Wedd.