Tokyo stocks open higher, extending US rallies

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks opened higher on Tuesday, tracking gains on Wall Street, with worries over the economic impact of Japan's coronavirus-triggered state of emergency offset by sound earnings reports.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.45 percent or 127.02 points at 28,218.07 in early trade, while the broader Topix index gained 0.47 percent or 8.52 points to 1,838.36.

"Investors took heart from a rebound in US shares," Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito said.

As some companies reported brisk earnings, "worries over the impact of the spread of Covid-19 in Japan is easing", he added.

But concerns over speculative investors upsetting the US market still linger, Mizuho Securities said.

Investors were also closely watching earnings reports by big names such as Panasonic and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial due later Tuesday, Mizuho added.

In Tokyo, Nintendo was up 2.65 percent at 64,300 yen after it said net profit nearly doubled in the nine months to December and hiked its full-year forecast as new virus lockdowns drive demand in the gaming sector.

Japan Airlines was down 0.75 percent at 1,850 yen after it said it was forecasting a larger-than-expected annual net loss of nearly $2.9 billion, as the aviation industry struggles with the fallout of the pandemic.

Panasonic was up 1.23 percent at 1,356 yen, while Sumitomo Mitsui Financial was down 0.54 percent at 3,297 yen ahead of their earnings reports due after market close.

The dollar fetched 104.90 yen in early Asian trade, against 104.94 yen in New York late Monday.

On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.8 percent at 30,211.91.