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| - Tokyo stocks opened higher on Thursday helped by a sharp rebound in Wall Street shares and a halt in the yen's appreciation against the dollar. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 1.15 percent or 243.68 points to 21,343.74 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was up 1.16 percent or 17.40 points at 1,519.90. "A surge in US shares and a lull in the yen's appreciation are helping a rebound in Japanese shares," Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, said in a commentary. The dollar fetched 107.54 yen in early Asian trade, against 107.55 yen in New York late Wednesday. Wall Street stocks rocketed higher, as Joe Biden's strong performance in the US Democratic primary shifted focus from the coronavirus outbreak. Biden's success in the Super Tuesday contests transformed the landscape in the Democratic battle for the right to take on President Donald Trump, establishing the former vice president as a major rival to leftist Bernie Sanders, who has worried investors. In Tokyo, major blue-chip exporters rallied, with Sony trading up 1.67 percent at 6,925 yen, Toyota up 0.63 percent at 7,018 yen and chip-making equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron up 1.07 percent at 23,095 yen. Takeda Pharmaceutical rallied 3.40 percent to 3,892 yen after it announced it will develop a medicine to cure the new coronavirus. On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 4.5 percent at 27,090.86. kh/sah/kaf
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