World Markets Higher as Japan’s Benchmark Nikkei 225 Breaks Its 1989 Record

A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo on Feb. 22, 2024. Eugene Hoshiko/AP Photo

BANGKOK—World markets advanced and Japan’s Nikkei 225 share benchmark surged to an all-time high on Thursday, bypassing its previous record set in December 1989.

Tokyo’s benchmark closed at 39,098.68 on Thursday. Its previous record was 38,915.87, set just before Japan’s bubble economy collapsed in the early 1990s.