/www.fxserver.com/ TOKYO (AP) -- Tokyo stocks rose Thursday morning following Wall Street's rally. The dollar was lower against the Japanese yen.
The Nikkei Stock Average of 225 selected issues was up 148.98 points, or 1.55 percent, at 9,741.22 points at the end of the morning session. The Nikkei gained 313.75 points, or 3.38 percent, on Wednesday.
The dollar was trading at 118.26 yen at 11 a.m. Thursday, down 0.96 yen from late Wednesday in Tokyo but above the 118.10 yen it later bought in New York.
In early trading, stocks were given a boost by the advance on Wall Street, where upbeat economic news sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday. Tokyo investors have been cheered in recent days by signs of a possible economic recovery both here and in the United States.
Thursday morning's gains were widespread, including automakers, high technology and banking shares. Toyota, Honda, Sony and Canon all ended the morning session higher.
In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average closed up 101.89 points, or 1.1 percent, at 9,142.84. The Nasdaq composite index rose 38.60 points, or 2.4 percent, to 1,678.73.
The Tokyo Stock Price Index rose 16.79 points, or 1.78 percent, at 962.03 points. The TOPIX, which includes more than 1,000 of Japan's largest companies, gained 28.98 points, or 3.16 percent, on Wednesday.
In currency trading, the euro bought $1.1521 Thursday morning, down slightly from $1.1536 late Wednesday. The euro bought 136.28 yen, down from 137.39 yen late Wednesday.
The yield on Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond was quoted at 1.0000 percent, up from 0.9000 percent late Wednesday. Its price fell 0.87 point to 95.47.
The Finance Ministry said Thursday that it has set the coupon of bonds at 0.9 percent -- 0.4 percentage point higher than its prior issue last June, which set a record low of 0.5 percent.
It is the first time since February 2002 the ministry has raised the coupon and comes after the price of government bonds has plummeted in recent months.