Summary Benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 91.82 points to 17,479.97.
TOKYO (AFP) - Tokyo stocks opened 0.53 percent higher on Thursday following a positive lead on Wall Street as a Bank of Japan business survey showed confidence among major manufacturers worsened.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 91.82 points to 17,479.97 in opening deals.
US stocks finished a painful third quarter on a positive note Wednesday, joining big European and Asian markets in rallying on speculation of more monetary stimulus.
Sentiment has been dented by worries about China s economy and concerns over a US Federal Reserve plan to raise near-zero interest rates in 2015.
"We ve had an adjustment after a rapid deterioration in sentiment about US stocks went too far," Mitsushige Akino from Ichiyoshi Asset Management in Tokyo told Bloomberg News.
"Japanese stocks will probably continue a natural rebound after the big drop on September 29."
The central bank s closely watched quarterly Tankan report showed the index stood at 12 in September, down from plus 15 in June.
Economists had predicted that it would worsen to 13.
Marcel Thieliant, an economist at Capital Economics in Singapore, said the survey confirmed fears that the world s third-largest economy could slip into recession as monthly activity data also points to a slowdown in Japan.
"Today s Tankan... corroborates other signs that Japan s economic recovery has ground to a halt," Thieliant said in an email to clients.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 1.47 percent, while the broad-based S&P 500 gained 1.91 percent and the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 2.28 percent.
On currency markets, the dollar was little changed at 119.87 yen from 119.86 yen Wednesday in New York.
The euro was trading at $1.1172 and 133.941 yen compared with $1.1176 and 133.95 yen in US trade.
