Tokyo stocks open marginally higher

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange was up 15.05 points or 0.17 percent at 8,736.29 after the first 20 minutes of trading.

The Nikkei may trade in a narrow 8,700-8,800 range as investors take a wait-and-see stance ahead of the outcome of the Federal Reserve meeting, said Kazuhiro Takahashi, general manager of investment strategy at Daiwa Securities.

As many market participants were already expecting the Fed to decide to buy long-dated Treasuries the focus was likely to be on "how effectively the outcome supports market sentiment," he told Dow Jones Newswires.

"That's OK, as long as we don't have a negative surprise," he said.

US stocks drifted mostly lower Tuesday amid Greek debt concerns and as investors awaited the end of the Fed meeting.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 7.65 points (0.07 percent) to finish at 11,408.66, but the broader S&P 500 fell 2.00 points (0.17 percent) to 1,202.09.

The euro bought $1.3703 and 104.70 yen in early Asian trade on Wednesday, unchanged from New York late Tuesday.

The dollar was also flat, changing hands at 76.37 yen.

Currency rates hardly moved after the finance ministry released trade data showing Japan logged a much larger than expected trade deficit in August as imports soared.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011