Nikkei rose in early trading as Hitachi and Kokusai Electric advanced, while Nomura and Mizuho fell; investors tracked corporate earnings, Middle East developments, crude oil prices and earthquake-related disruption risks.
Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average traded modestly higher in early trading, with gains in electronics shares outweighing weakness in financial stocks. Hitachi Ltd. rose 3.3% and Kokusai Electric gained 4.7%, while Nomura Holdings fell 6.7% and Mizuho Financial Group dropped 2.8%. The Nikkei was up 0.4% at 61,683.96, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.6% to 3,949.23. The dollar traded at 163.26 yen versus 163.55 yen at Wednesday’s Tokyo stock market close. Investors were monitoring corporate earnings, developments in the Middle East, crude oil prices and potential business disruption after a major earthquake in Kumamoto, southern Japan.