TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rose 1.15 percent on Thursday morning as exporters gained from a stronger euro, buoyed by signs of progress in Europe's battle to contain its sovereign debt crisis.
The benchmark Nikkei index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 100.23 points to 8,839.13 by the lunch break. The Topix index of all first-section issues rose 7.00 points or 0.93 percent to 760.44.
Buying was spurred by the yen's drop against the euro and stronger hopes that officials would formulate a plan to shore up the eurozone's banking system, brokers said.
European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said Wednesday that European banks "urgently" needed to recapitalise to weather the sovereign debt storm.
"There was concern that Europe may deliver 'too little, too late' -- but investors are relieved with the stringent take on the banks," said Masayoshi Yano, a senior market analyst at Meiwa Securities.
The euro was at $1.3768 and 106.17 yen in Tokyo morning trade, slightly down from New York late Thursday but still sharply up from $1.3518 and 104.46 yen a day earlier.
The dollar traded at 77.15 yen compared to 77.24 yen in New York.
A day after Slovakia's parliament blocked an expansion of the eurozone emergency fund, Slovak political parties agreed Wednesday to hold a new vote this week that they said would result in the approval of the plan by Friday.
All the other 16 eurozone members have already ratified the plan to enhance the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), a tool created last year after debt-riddled Greece took a bailout from the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.
In Tokyo, investors were shifting to major Japanese exporters and away from domestic demand-related shares as concerns over global economic growth eased, said a senior strategist at a Japanese brokerage.
Sony jumped 3.55 percent to 1,571 yen while Japan Tobacco tumbled 3.72 percent to 348,500 yen, one of the heaviest-weighted negative influences on the Nikkei thus far on the day.
Fast Retailing, the operator of Japan's cheap-chic clothing chain Uniqlo, was up just 0.07 percent at 13,280, after it said Wednesday that it suffered its first profit fall in four years due to rising costs and weak domestic sales.
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