Tokyo stocks edged up Wednesday morning following gains on Wall Street overnight. The U.S. dollar was slightly lower against the Japanese yen but up against the euro.
The Nikkei Stock Average of 225 selected issues rose 51.16 points, or 0.43 percent, to 11,831.69 points at the end of morning trade. The index added 39.93 points, or 0.34 percent, Tuesday.
The dollar was trading at 104.61 yen at 11 a.m. (0200 GMT) Wednesday, down 0.03 yen from late Tuesday in Tokyo but above the 104.39 yen it bought in New York later that day.
Stocks inched up after Tuesday's U.S. stock gains, which followed falling oil prices and a broker upgrade of the semiconductor sector.
Technology issues attracted early buying as investors took a cue from gains in their American counterparts the day before.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 63.77 points, or 0.59 percent, to 10,830.00, and the tech-dominated Nasdaq composite index gained 19.53 points, or 0.95 percent, to 2,071.25.
The broader TOPIX, which includes all issues on the Tokyo market's first section, gained 6.07 points, or 0.51 percent, to 1,185.97 points. The TOPIX rose 2.49 points, or 0.21 percent, the day before.
In currencies, the dollar remained lower in early Tokyo trading after the yen benefited from upbeat Japanese economic data, including stronger household spending and employment.
The euro fell to US$1.3156 Wednesday morning in Tokyo from US$1.3194 late Tuesday and to 137.64 yen from 138.10 yen.
The yield on Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond rose to 1.5150 percent from Tuesday's finish of 1.4900 percent. Its price slipped 0.21 point to 98.16.