Tokyo stocks gained for a fifth straight day to hit an 11-week high on Wednesday, propelled by a solid debut by electricity wholesaler J-Power and renewed interest in Internet conglomerate Softbank Corp.
Shipping stocks steamed ahead as Nippon Yusen KK, Japan's biggest shipping company, said it would expand its fleet, while mining, metal and oil issues also found themselves back in favour after a bout of profit-taking on Tuesday.
The price of crude oil rose to new highs above $51 per barrel in New York, sending most US stock indices lower. Tokyo's Nikkei average finished up 0.92 percent or 103.55 points at 11,385.38 while the broader TOPIX index added 0.66 percent to 1,147.69.
Both benchmarks hit their highest closing levels since July 21. The Nikkei rose 500 points in the previous four days from a seven-week closing low of 10,786 on September 29, bolstered by data showing an upswing in corporate sentiment as well as some upward revisions in company earnings.
J-Power, or Electric Power Development Co Ltd, the most active issue by value, ended up at 2,780 yen, 3 percent above its offer price of 2,700 yen, as the stock's perceived low risk attracted investors.
J-Power's $3.34 billion initial public offering was the world's second biggest this year after a $4.4 billion offering by Belgian telecom group Belgacom SA. Other power stocks slipped as investors adjusted their portfolios, with Tokyo Electric Power Co Inc dropping 0.8 percent to 2,390 yen.
Softbank, the second most active issue by value and a member of the Nikkei 225 from this month jumped 4.7 percent to 5,330 yen after margin trading data showed selling pressure had significantly eased.
The number of open long positions or potential sellers of Softbank was nearly equal to potential buyers, in contrast to figures from late July when potential sellers were nearly four times greater than potential buyers.
Nippon Yusen climbed 2.9 percent to 604 yen after it said it would rise its spending on vessel procurement by 30 percent from plan. Other shippers such as Mitsui O.S.K Lines Ltd also gained after business daily Nihon Keisei reported that Japan's top three shipping firms would spend about 3 trillion yen ($27 billion) by the end of fiscal 2009/10 on buying 630 new vessels to meet growing demand.
Benefiting from the oil price rise was Japan's largest refiner Nippon Oil, which climbed 2.8 percent to 726 yen, and Nippon Mining Holdings Inc, another major refiner, which rose 2.6 percent to 587.
Elsewhere in the market, Fuji Photo Film Co Ltd, the world's second-biggest maker of photographic film, rose 3.5 percent to 3,810 yen after a rating upgrade by Daiwa Institute of Research on prospects for sound profit growth.
UFJ Holdings Inc shares shrugged off media reports that Japan's financial watchdog is set to make a criminal complaint as this week against its core banking unit for impeding an inspection, edging up 0.2 percent to 499,000 yen.