Tokyo stocks up at break on upbeat data, weak yen

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rallied Monday morning on upbeat Japanese data and a weaker yen, with the North Korea crisis in focus as the US pushes for tough new sanctions against the nuclear-armed state.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index climbed 1.38 percent, or 266.54 points, to 19,541.36 by the break while the broader Topix index was up 1.36 percent, or 21.64 points, at 1,615.18.

Traders breathed a sigh of relief that Pyongyang did not fire another missile on Saturday, choosing instead to mark its foundation day with a parade.

"Investors who had sold equities on wariness over a possible missile launch from North Korea are unwinding their positions for now," Hiroyasu Iida, head of the investment research center at Aizawa Securities, told Bloomberg News.

Now, all eyes are on the UN Security Council where Washington is pushing for a vote Monday on fresh punitive measures against Pyongyang following its sixth nuclear test, despite resistance from China and Russia.

"Cautious trading is expected to continue for now ahead of the UN Security Council" meeting, said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

The dollar rebounded to 108.40 yen from 107.83 yen in New York late Friday.

A cheaper yen inflates the profitability of exporters, bolstering demand for their shares.

Investors also cheered a better-than-expected 8.0 percent on-month rise in Japanese machinery orders for July -- a key leading indicator of corporate investment.

In share trading, the weaker yen drove an automaker rally as Toyota rose 1.30 percent to 6,301 yen with rival Nissan up 1.14 percent at 1,102 yen.

Sony jumped 3.67 percent to 4,456 yen, Panasonic rose 0.71 percent to 1,479 yen, while video game giant Nintendo gained 0.97 percent to end the morning at 36,350 yen.

Japan Post slipped 0.22 percent to 1,341 yen after reports said the government was planning another multi-billion-dollar share sale this month.