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| - Tokyo's key Nikkei index opened higher on Thursday after US high-tech shares rebounded on enthusiasm over prospects for a Covid-19 vaccine following two days of declines. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.60 percent or 152.85 points at 25,502.45 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.07 percent or 1.20 points to 1,727.87. "Japanese shares are seen gaining, supported by a sharp rally in the US Nasdaq, while investors are also aware of overheating in the market," Toshiyuki Kanayama, senior market analyst at Monex, said in a commentary. The dollar fetched 105.48 yen in early Asian trade, against 105.59 yen in London late on Wednesday. "Profit-taking selling may weigh on the upside but purchase orders encouraged by expectations for a coronavirus vaccine development are overwhelming the market," Mizuho Securities said in a commentary. Investors were awaiting earnings reports later in the day by Nissan and e-commerce platform Rakuten among others, it said. In Tokyo, chip-linked shares were among winners, with equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron gaining 1.34 percent to 30,240 yen and chip-testing equipment maker Advantest trading up 1.51 percent at 6,730 yen. Nissan was down 1.33 percent at 415.6 yen ahead of its first-half earnings report due after the closing bell. Honda was down 0.70 percent at 2,973.5 yen after it won approval to sell highly autonomous self-driving cars in Japan, in what the automaker and Japanese authorities said was a world-first. Online mall giant Rakuten was up 1.89 percent at 1,132 yen ahead of its first-half earnings report due after the market close. On Wall Street, the Dow Jones lost 0.08 percent to 29,397.63 points while the tech-rich Nasdaq gained 2.01 percent after two sessions of declines. kh/sah/jah
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