The Nikkei rose 0.25% to 28,110.39 points, after an eighth consecutive session of gains, the first since last September. The broader Topix index advanced 0.14% to 1,981.56 points.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange erased its losses from the start of the day to end up Thursday for the eighth time in a row, despite the closing down on Wall Street the day before.
The flagship Nikkei index rose 0.25% to 28,110.39 points, after an eighth consecutive session of increases, the first since last September.
The broader Topix index advanced 0.14% to 1,981.56 points.
“While uncertainty still dominates regarding the situation in Ukraine, the market seems to have been affected by factors related to the end of the fiscal year (March 31, editor’s note) such as purchases with a view to receiving dividends” , Hideyuki Suzuki of SBI Securities told AFP.
The New York Stock Exchange ended at half mast on Wednesday, accusing the backlash of the rebound of the last sessions as oil prices started to rise again, stimulated by the prospect of new sanctions against Russia and the fall in American stocks.
“Oil prices are likely to stay above $100 a barrel for some time, which will put a damper on the global economy,” commented Ito Takashi of Nomura Securities, quoted by Bloomberg. .
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index fell for its part by 0.9% around 07:45 GMT.
On the side of values
TOSHIBA: Toshiba shares closed down 0.5% at 4,761 yen, after plunging more than 5% during the session following the rejection by shareholders of the Japanese conglomerate of its plan to split into two independent companies .
The resolution proposed by a group of activist shareholders, which aimed in particular to ensure that the group explores “all alternatives” to its demerger plan, was also rejected, further increasing uncertainty about the strategic direction of Toshiba ahead of another vote scheduled for 2023.
TOYOTA: the Toyota title climbed 2.94% to 2,200 yen. The automaker, whose stock price has suffered in recent months from disruptions in its production, announced on Wednesday a buyback of its own shares for a total amount of 100 billion yen (750 million euros).
On the side of currencies and oil
On the foreign exchange market, the yen fell further against the dollar, at 121.61 yen for the dollar around 07:45 GMT against 121.15 yen on Wednesday at 21:00 GMT.
The Japanese currency was stable against the euro, which was worth 133.51 yen against 133.32 yen the day before.
The European currency hardly changed either against the greenback, at the rate of one euro for 1.0978 dollars against 1.1004 dollars on Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. GMT.
Oil prices were moving in dispersed order: around 07:40 GMT the price of a barrel of American WTI stagnated (-0.04%) at 114.88 dollars and that of a barrel of Brent from the North Sea gained 0.43% at 122 .12 dollars.