Japan's Nikkei average rose 1.9 percent on Thursday, with exporters such as Canon Inc climbing on a stabilising yen and easing concerns about a US recession. Trading houses such as Mitsubishi Corp extended their gains, buoyed by rising prices of commodities including crude oil.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and other bank shares also rose on hopes that some measures are on the way to address US subprime problems. "We should be seeing a rebound like this with the Nikkei having lost nearly 1,000 points and then moving flat in recent sessions," said Masayoshi Okamoto, head of dealing at Jujiya Securities.
The Tokyo market's mood improved following US data suggesting the services sector may not be as weak as feared, allaying investors' concerns about a recession in the world's largest economy.
Market participants also said the market had added gains in the afternoon on news that US House Democrats were planning a bill that may call for federal purchases of distressed mortgages. "The news came as a supporting shot when the market was looking for some leads to rebound on," said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, group manager of the investment research department at SMBC Friend Securities.
The benchmark Nikkei average ended at 13,215.42, one day after logging its lowest close since January 23. The broader TOPIX index added 1.9 percent to 1,287.55. Digital camera maker Canon rose 2.2 percent to 4,640 yen and industrial robot maker Fanuc Ltd gained 2.6 percent to 9,550 yen, making it the biggest contributor to the Nikkei.
No 1 bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group rose 2.2 percent to 900 yen and second-biggest Mizuho Financial Group gained 2.7 percent to 414,00 yen. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, the third-biggest bank, climbed 3.3 percent to 730,000 yen.
Nippon Steel Corp ended down 2.5 percent at 510 yen after the world's second-biggest steelmaker cut its full-year profit outlook during the afternoon session due to higher-than-expected freight and other costs, joining three Japanese counterparts in trimming annual earnings estimates.
Rising commodities prices continued to push up trading houses, which have stakes in overseas oil fields and mines. Mitsubishi gained 4 percent to 3,350 yen and Mitsui & Co climbed 1.9 percent to 2,395 yen. Copper and gold producer Sumitomo Metal Mining Co Ltd gained 2.7 percent to 2,205 yen on a jump in metal prices.
Record oil prices sent Japan's top oil and gas developer Inpex Holdings Inc up 6 percent to 1.24 million yen. Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section, with 2 billion shares changing hands, in line with last week's daily average. Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones by a ratio of more than 8 to 1.