TOKYO, June 2 — Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index gained more than one per cent today with investors encouraged by US rallies and the re-opening of Japan’s economy following recent declines in coronavirus infections.

The Nikkei 225 index rose 1.19 per cent, or 263.22 points, to close at 22,325.61, while the broader Topix index advanced 1.21 per cent, or 18.93 points, to 1,587.68.

Tokyo stocks opened higher, taking a positive lead from Wall Street, where stocks gained ground yesterday, shrugging off unrest in many cities following anti-racism protests and worsening US-China tensions.

The Tokyo market maintained buying sentiment during the day "as investors welcome the reopening of the economy”, said Toshikazu Horiuchi, a broker at IwaiCosmo Securities.

"But players are cautious as stocks rose quite fast over the past few days,” Horiuchi told AFP.

Senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama from Monex added: "The Japanese market is supported by rallies in US shares, but a sense of a short-term overheating could cap the upside.”

Higher US futures outweighed the negative factors of unrest on American streets and worsening US-China tensions over Hong Kong, analysts said.

The dollar fetched ¥107.70 (RM4.29) in Asian afternoon trade, against ¥107.58 in New York yesterday.

In Tokyo, many blue-chip shares rallied, with Sony surging 2.29 per cent to ¥7,133 and Toyota up 0.80 per cent at ¥6,774.

Investment and telecom giant SoftBank Group jumped 3.32 per cent to ¥5,185, but Nintendo lost 0.87 per cent to ¥44,070. ­— AFP