TOKYO: Tokyo's key Nikkei index reversed earlier losses to end slightly higher Monday, though investors were largely cautious ahead of a public holiday in Japan.
The Nikkei 225 index inched up 0.09 percent, or 28.24 points, to end at 29,774.11, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.08 percent, or 1.71 points, to 2,042.82.
"Investor sentiment was bolstered by gains of US futures, but they also stayed cautious ahead of a holiday" on Tuesday, Okasan Online Securities said in a note.
Mizuho Securities added that traders were eyeing the spread of coronavirus infections in Europe. The dollar stood at 114.16 yen in Asian trade, against 114.01 on Friday in New York.
In Tokyo trading, SoftBank Group lost 0.49 percent to 6,822 yen while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing climbed 0.47 percent to 74,120 yen.
The market was also monitoring the impact of weekend media reports that Japan is weighing the release of oil from its reserves in coordination with the United States to ease pressure from surging oil prices.
Japan's top government spokesman said Monday however that "nothing has been decided".
Energy developer INPEX plunged 4.46 percent to 920 yen. Top refiner ENEOS Holdings dipped 0.52 percent to 432.3 yen.
Its smaller rival Idemitsu Kosan fell 0.56 percent to 2,979 yen.
Automakers were lower with Toyota losing 1.28 percent to 2,105 yen and Nissan tumbling 3.41 percent to 614.5 yen. Honda was down 0.96 percent to 3,292 yen.
Some pharmaceutical shares advanced, with Astellas gaining 1.58 percent to 1,953.5 yen, Daiichi Sankyo rising 0.16 percent to 3,000 yen and Shionogi jumping 2.73 percent to 8,083 yen.
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