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| - Tokyo's key Nikkei index opened slightly higher on Thursday as investors took heart from rallies on Wall Street but trade was subdued with a lack of fresh market-moving events. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index edged up 0.30 percent or 66.48 points to 22,505.13 in early trade, while the broader Topix index was flat -- down just 0.07 points at 1,557.16. "Japanese shares are steady as the three major indices in the US market rallied," said Okasan Online Securities. But trade is likely to remain subdued as "a higher yen against the dollar is weighing on exporters," it added. Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at AxiCorp, said "the uptick in sentiment seems unrelated to any specific news flow... it seems investors are content to ride the narrow ranges." The dollar fetched 107.20 yen in early Asian trade, against 107.25 yen in New York and 107.53 yen in late Tokyo hours on Wednesday. Among major shares in Tokyo, industrial robot maker Fanuc was higher by 2.2 percent at 19,745 yen, Sony was up 0.12 percent at 7,439 yen and Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing climbed 0.18 percent at 62,240 yen. But Toyota was down 0.22 percent at 6,713 yen and Olympus was off 0.90 percent at 1,972.4 yen. On Wall Street, big gains by large tech companies lifted the Nasdaq to another record close, its fourth in five sessions. The Dow also ended up 0.7 percent at 26,067.28. kh/ric/rbu
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