Japan's Nikkei rises on strong earnings; Honda lifts Topix

Japan's Nikkei share average ended higher on Thursday, reversing early losses as strong corporate earnings countered concerns ahead of U.S. consumer price inflation data.

The Nikkei index rose 0.84% to close at 32,473.65, after opening 0.58% lower tracking overnight losses on Wall Street. The broader Topix advanced 0.92% to 2,303.51.

"The market was supported by stocks that reported strong results. The first-quarter corporate earnings season overall was very strong," said Shoichi Arisawa, general manager of the investment research department at IwaiCosmo Securities.


U.S. stocks closed lower on Wednesday, a day ahead of the U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation report that could influence the Federal Reserve's interest rate decisions.

"The U.S. inflation data will be announced at a time when yields on long-term bonds in the U.S. and Japan are volatile, which has made investors nervous," Arisawa said.

Japanese markets will be closed on Friday for a holiday.

Among individual stocks, Honda Motor advanced 5.87% to provide the biggest boost to the Topix, after the automaker reported a 78% jump in quarterly profit.

Rival Toyota Motor gained 1.4%.

Inpex surged 16.62% after the oil and gas explorer raised its full-year net profit forecast by 7% and announced measures to boost the company's value and shareholder returns.

The mining sector jumped 14.93%, becoming the top performer among the 33 industry sub-indexes on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Sony Group lost 3.23% after the entertainment conglomerate reported a 31% slide in operating profit for the April-June quarter due to lacklustre performance at its movies and financial divisions.

Olympus tanked 12.02% after the medical equipment maker posted a nearly 50% drop in its first-quarter operating profit.