Tokyo stocks edged up Thursday, recovering slightly from the previous day's sharp losses, but gains were capped by a strong yen. The Nikkei slumped more than two percent Wednesday, in line with a global rout, on concerns Donald Trump's struggles to push healthcare reform through Congress could delay spending and tax-cut measures that helped fire world markets from November.
On Thursday investors tentatively returned to buy bargains but confidence was sapped by fears about Trump's policies and the Federal Reserve's indication last week that interest rates will rise slower than previously thought.
Greg McKenna, chief market strategist at AxiTrader, said: "A not inconsiderable risk is that the administration gets bogged down in the repeal of Obamacare, spends its political capital, and delays the tax and infrastructure plans that so boosted the market."
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.23 percent, or 43.93 points, to close at 19,085.31, while the Topix index of all first-section issues finished 0.01 percent, or 0.21 points, higher at 1,530.41.
A strong yen also hurt some exporters, with the dollar wallowing around four-month lows.
The greenback bought 111.36 yen, compared with 111.13 yen in New York, and the 111.57 yen seen in Tokyo earlier Wednesday. It was sitting in the mid-113 yen region at the end of last week.
The yen is considered a safe bet in times of uncertainty or turmoil, but its strength hurts the profitability of Japanese exporters.
Toyota slipped 0.01 percent to 6,160 yen, while Honda edged up 0.61 percent to 3,434 yen and Nintendo fell 2.09 percent to 26,830 yen.
Fujitsu was down 0.75 percent at 653.5 yen at the close, after a report said Fujitsu and Lenovo will push back plans to merge their PC businesses.