Japanese stocks rose slightly Monday morning, rising to their highest level in more than four years. Steel shares got a lift from positive data showing an increase in capital spending. The dollar fell against the yen. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 9.36 points, or 0.07 percent, to 12,609.36 points to end the morning session. On Friday, the index rose to 12,600.00 points, its highest close since July 5, 2001. The broader TOPIX, which includes all issues on the exchange's first section, rose 3.69 points, or 0.29 percent, to 1,286.48. Steel stocks gained on new data showing that Japan's capital spending increased 7.3 percent on year in the April-June quarter. With daily trading volume remaining high, some traders predict the Nikkei could rise to around 12,800 points before the Sept. 11 election if market sentiment turns further bullish on brighter outlook for economy. Wall Street fell on Friday, finishing a difficult week amid uncertainty about the economic impact of Hurricane Katrina, had little reaction to a sharp decline in oil prices and lower unemployment. U.S. markets were closed Monday. On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 12.26, or 0.12 percent, to 10,447.37, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index dropped 0.32 percent to 2,141.07. In currency trading, the dollar was trading at 109.24 yen on the Tokyo foreign exchange market at 11 a.m. Monday, down 0.32 yen from late Friday, and below the 109.66 yen it bought in New York later that day. The euro rose to $1.2576 from $1.2543 late Friday. The yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond rose to 1.3200 percent from Friday's close of 1.3150. Its price fell 0.05 to 100.70.