Tokyo stocks higher at break

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rose on Thursday morning, supported by another record finish on Wall Street and expectations for strong corporate profits.

All three major New York indexes ended at all-time highs on solid earnings, lifting spirits as Japan's reporting season begins in earnest next week.

Thursday's rise "shows rising expectations for corporate earnings", Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito said in a commentary.

Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.36 percent, or 71.28 points, to 20,092.14 by the break, while the Topix index of all first-section issues was up 0.58 percent, or 9.39 points, at 1,631.26.

However, traders were cautious ahead of the latest policy meeting of the Bank of Japan later in the day.

While it is expected to stand pat on monetary policy, investors will be keeping a close eye on its statement for clues about the future.

"The BoJ is likely to keep its policy status quo, but some in the market are conscious of the odds of any reference to a potential exit" from its massive stimulus programme, said Yutaka Takahashi, a Tokyo-based market analyst at Kyokuto Securities.

"Expectations over the domestic economy will attract buying interest for sectors like retail and construction," he told Bloomberg News.

Construction contractor Obayashi rose 1.34 percent to 1,358 yen and Taisei climbed 1.22 percent to 1,077 yen.

Nissan Motors gained 1.46 percent to 1,145 yen and Sony rose 0.77 percent to 4,532 yen.

The dollar was trading at 111.97 yen against 111.84 yen late in New York.