The benchmark Nikkei 225 index climbed 0.68 percent or 140.11 points to 20,733.46 in early trade while the broader Topix index was up 0.63 percent or 9.47 points at 1,508.13.

"US stocks rose sharply, providing relief and support to the Tokyo market," said Makoto Sengoku, market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Institute.

The stronger-than-expected GDP data also helped boost the market, he said.

"The reading of the data itself was not a huge buying peg... but nonetheless it confirmed personal spending could pick up," he said.

Official data showed gross domestic product (GDP) in the world's third-biggest economy grew 0.4 percent from the previous quarter on robust consumer demand, beating analysts' median forecast of 0.1 percent.

Japan had an unprecedented string of 10 holidays around the May 1 enthronement of the new emperor, igniting travel and other leisure demand.

In currency trade, the yen remained strong, capping buying in stocks.

The dollar changed hands at 105.99 yen against 106.06 yen in New York Thursday afternoon.

IT investor SoftBank Group rose 1.01 percent to 5,098 yen and Toyota was up 0.60 percent at 6,851 yen.