TOKYO: Tokyo stocks closed 0.54 percent higher on Wednesday, reversing earlier losses thanks to a stronger dollar despite lingering concerns over possible US military action against Syria.
The Nikkei 225 index ended up 75.43 points to 14,053.87 while the Topix index of all first-section issues was up 0.62 percent, or 7.12 points, to 1,156.30.
Stocks opened down and fell further when a magnitude 6.5 earthquake shook Tokyo and other cities along the Pacific coast, but calm soon returned to the market when it became obvious no damage had been caused.
The dollar strengthened in afternoon trade, helping exporters who benefit from a weaker yen.
"In a futures-led market, traders appear to be pricing in outcomes of a series of events such as Tokyo's 2020 Summer Olympics bid and the Federal Reserve's tapering of stimulus," Chibagin Asset Management general manager for research Yoshihiro Okumura told Dow Jones Newswires.
The dollar rose to 99.72 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade against 99.54 yen Tuesday in New York.
The greenback held steady earlier in Asian trade as upbeat US data and concerns over possible military action in Syria largely cancelled each other out.
In stocks trading, Fast Retailing was flat at 34,050 yen despite strong August sales at its Uniqlo clothes chain that jumped 28.9 percent from a year earlier on a same-store basis.
Exporters were higher. Toyota Motor rose 0.48 percent to 6,230 yen, and Honda edged up 0.54 percent to 3,675 yen after a report in the Nikkei business daily that the automaker would increase its dividend payment. (AFP)
