The Nikkei 225 stock index broke another record Friday — and closed in on but didn’t quite reach the 45,000 mark — as a rally sustained throughout the week continued.

Trade was choppy but at times strong on Friday, with decisive moves upward in the morning and then again afternoon.

The benchmark started the trading day up nearly 1%, beating the previous record of 44,396.95 right at the open. Its high for the day, and the new all-time high, was 44,888.02, which was hit at 9:03 a.m.

New all-time highs were also reached on Tuesday and Thursday this week.

On Friday, the benchmark closed up 0.89% at 44,768.12, which is a record close. It was the third record close in a row.

SoftBank rose 1.82%, Sony was up 0.73% while Nintendo rose by 0.64%. Tokyo Electron was up 5.51% and Resonac rose 3.98%.

Tokyo stocks moved in line with a Wall Street rally overnight, which got rolling after consumer price data reported in the United States showed no substantial inflation increase in August, further boosting confidence that the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut rates at its next policy meeting, scheduled for Sept. 16 and 17.

The consumer price index rose by 2.9% year-on-year in August, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. That was in line with market expectations. Wholesale price data, released in the United States earlier this week, indicated a surprise decline, which also further fueled confidence that the Fed will cut rates in September.

Overnight, the S&P 500 closed up 0.85% while the Nasdaq composite gained 0.72%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average broke the 46,000 mark for the first time ever.

The Nikkei 225 is up more than 20% over the past year. Early concerns about tariffs ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump have given way to optimism as initial duty rates have been lowered and as negotiations have continued.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s announcement on Sunday that he will resign as president of the Liberal Democratic Party — and by extension as prime minister — has also helped, as some traders bet that political change might be good for the economy.

News reports so far have indicated five potential candidates who might run for the leadership of the LDP, currently held by Ishiba. The winner is expected to be named prime minister within a week of the election.

On Thursday in the U.S. and Friday in Tokyo, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reaffirmed that they will let the market determine exchange rates and that they will not manipulate currencies for competitive advantage.

The yen traded steadily at ¥147.4 to the dollar on Friday.