The Topix Index climbed 1% to 4,180 and reached fresh record highs on Thursday, while the Nikkei 225 Index rose 1.1% to above 68,000 as subdued US inflation data reduced pressure on the Federal Reserve (U.S. central bank) to raise interest rates in the near term. Markets now see around a 40% chance of a 25 basis point rate hike, a quarter-point increase, from the Fed in September, down from nearly 50% a day earlier. In Japan, producer prices, a measure of wholesale inflation, rose 7.2% in July after 7.3% in June and came in below forecasts of 7.4%. Technology and artificial intelligence-related stocks led the advance, with gains in Kioxia Holdings, Taiyo Yuden, Advantest, Ibiden Co and Murata Manufacturing, while bank shares including Mitsubishi UFJ and Mizuho Financial also moved higher.