Japan Shares Rise Supported by Strong Gains in The Technology

Japanese stocks rose on Thursday as technology shares followed their peers that made solid gains on Wall Street late Wednesday, although caution ahead of US data releases weighed on investor sentiment.

The Nikkei index rose 0.42 percent to close at 27,696.08 points, after jumping more than one percent earlier in the session. The broader Topix index rose 0.53 percent to 1962.61 points.

Chip-related companies led the Nikkei’s gains, with Tokyo Electron Co. up 1.82% and Advantest Co. 2.78 percent.

Honda Motor Co. rose 5.61 percent after the company raised its full-year operating profit forecast, helped by cost-cutting measures and a weaker yen, despite the continued global shortage of chips.

Toyota Motor shares fell 2.74 percent.

SoftBank Group shares fell 2.3 percent.