Nikkei average jumps

Japan's Nikkei average edged back towards a 10-month high on Thursday on relief after the Federal Reserve suggested the US economy is through the worst of the recession, with economy-sensitive exporters such as Advantest Corp leading it higher. Denso Corp, the world's biggest listed auto parts maker, rose 3.4 percent after Mitsubishi UFJ Securities raised its rating on the stock to "1" from "3" and set a target price of 3,680 yen.
The benchmark Nikkei rose 0.8 percent or 82.19 points to 10,517.19, edging back towards a 10-month high of 10,587.36 hit on Tuesday, with gains in Hong Kong shares providing an additional boost in afternoon trade. The broader Topix rose 0.9 percent to 968.41. With the long-awaited Fed meeting and a slew of Chinese indicators out of the way, analysts said eyes are now on Monday's announcement of second quarter Japanese gross domestic product data and Japan's August 30 general election.
Surveys have shown Japan's opposition Democratic Party has a good chance of ousting Prime Minister Taro Aso's Liberal Democratic Party, ending half a century of almost unbroken rule by the business-friendly party. Kawasaki Heavy, which makes railway rolling stock, shot up 6.9 percent to 263 yen, while another rolling stock maker, Nippon Sharyo Ltd, jumped 8.9 percent to 652 yen. Kinki Sharyo Co climbed 8.7 percent to 913 yen.
High-tech exporters rose, with chip-tester maker Advantest climbing 4.9 percent to 2,350 yen and electronics parts maker Kyocera Corp adding 1.8 percent to 7,780 yen. Shares of Honda Motor Co advanced 1.3 percent to 3,080 yen and Toyota Motor Corp rose 1.5 percent to 4,090 yen.
Mazda Motor Corp gained 3.1 percent to 264 yen after the Nikkei business daily said the automaker could raise its domestic production outlook for April-September by about 10 percent as stimulus programmes in Japan and abroad boost demand. Toray Industries was up 6 percent at 568 yen after a Nikkei business daily report that the synthetic fibre maker has developed a method that could supply insulin to diabetes patients through a nose spray instead of injection. Trade was light on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with 1.9 billion shares changing hands, below last week's daily average of 2.1 billion. Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones by more than 3 to 1.