Tokyo stocks gained marginally Tuesday as investors awaited more earnings reports and a series of key events later this week, including a Group of Seven meeting. The dollar was up against the Japanese yen.
The benchmark Nikkei Stock Average of 225 selected issues was up 0.14 point, negligible in percentage terms, at 11,387.73 points at the end of the morning session Tuesday. The index gained 67.01 points, or 0.59 percent, on Monday.
The dollar bought 103.64 yen at 11 a.m. Tuesday, up 0.06 yen from late Monday in Tokyo and almost unchanged from the 103.63 yen it bought in New York later that day.
Japanese stocks rose moderately in early trading as investors welcomed Wall Street's strength. But initial gains diminished as many players grew cautious ahead of a series of earnings reports from major Japanese companies later Tuesday, as well as the U.S.
Federal Reserve's Open Market Committee meeting Wednesday and the G7 finance ministers' meeting beginning Friday.
Tech issues were mixed, with Advantest Corp. and Kyocera Corp. falling, while others including NEC Corp. and Toshiba Corp. gaining in morning trade.
In New York Monday, U.S. stocks gained on successful elections in Iraq and a bevy of merger and acquisition deals.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 62.74, or 0.6 percent, to 10,489.94, and the Nasdaq composite index gained 26.58, or 1.31 percent, to 2,062.41.
In Tokyo early Tuesday, the broader TOPIX, the index of all issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section, added 0.57 points, or 0.05 percent, to 1,146.71 points. The TOPIX climbed 5.44 points, or 0.48 percent, the day before.
In currency trading, the dollar remained stable after gaining slight ground Monday in New York in restrained and directionless trading ahead of President Bush's State of the Union speech Wednesday, the G7 meeting, and U.S. January job data for Friday.
The euro rose to $1.3047 Tuesday morning in Tokyo from $1.3016 late Monday. Against the Japanese currency, the euro was higher at 135.22 yen from 134.84 yen.
The yield on Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond was unchanged from Monday's finish of 1.3200 percent, with the price of 100.69 points.