Yahoo Finance Tokyo shares close higher, extending global rally
Tokyo stocks rose for a fourth successive day on Wednesday as part of a global rally, buoyed by solid US corporate earnings and a slide in the yen.
Investors were keenly awaiting Donald Trump's US tax cut plans, which are due later in the day, while easing worries over US-North Korea tensions also brought some back from the sidelines.
"Confidence has returned and the yen has fallen back," Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors in Sydney, told Bloomberg News.
"Markets seem a lot more relaxed. Globally, we're seeing a lot of risk-on" sentiment, he said.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 1.10 percent, or 210.10 points, to close at 19,289.43, while the Topix index of all first-section issues added 1.20 percent, or 18.20 points, to 1,537.41.
Exporters were among the big winners as the dollar rose to 111.41 yen from 111.12 yen in New York.
Solid earnings from big US companies including heavy equipment maker Caterpillar and McDonald's boosted Wall Street, where the Nasdaq ended above 6,000 for the first time.
North Korea, which some feared was preparing a fresh nuclear test, concluded Tuesday's 85th anniversary of the foundation of its military with no major provocation.
World markets started the week with a surge after centrist Emmanuel Macron came out on top in the first round of France's presidential election, which is seen as a crucial test for the future of a European Union besieged by rising populism.
In Tokyo trading, construction-equipment maker Komatsu surged 3.37 percent to 2,945 yen, Panasonic added 1.91 percent to 1,360 yen and Toyota climbed 2.57 percent to 6,154 yen.
The Japanese arm of McDonald's rose 0.59 percent to 3,425 yen after the US parent said it had shelved a plan to sell the unit, which has suffered a series of food scares and slumping sales.
Electronics and heavy engineering conglomerate Hitachi jumped 3.62 percent to 618.5 yen, after saying later Tuesday it is buying Sullair, US-based maker of air compressors, for 135.7 billion yen.
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