Tokyo stocks rose Wednesday morning, shrugging off a fall on overseas markets as oil-linked shares and banks rose while a halt in the yen's rally lifted exporters. The Japanese market has been under pressure since weak GDP figures Monday resurrected fears about growth in the world's number three economy, just as the stronger yen is taking a bite out of company profits.
"Considering how much the yen has strengthened, Japanese shares are showing resilience," Chihiro Ohta, a senior strategist with SMBC Nikko Securities, told Bloomberg News. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.50 percent, or 83.38 points, to 16,679.89 by the lunch break, while the broader Topix index of all first-section shares was up 0.41 percent, or 5.34 points, at 1,303.81.
Stronger oil prices are giving crude-linked shares a boost with energy explorer Inpex soaring more than five percent to 880.9 yen and refiner JX Holdings jumping 2.25 percent to 385.7 yen. Banking giants Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group gained 2.39 percent to 530.4 yen and 2.10 percent to 3,399 yen. Exporters rose as the yen's rally fizzled, with Toyota tacking on 1.66 percent to 5,973 yen.