TOKYO, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average
bounced back on Thursday, with steelmakers leading the gains,
after comments from U.S. President Donald Trump revived optimism
about trade talks between the United States and China.
The Nikkei 225 index .N225 rose 0.89% to 23,346.05, back
above the 25-day moving average of 23,275, a key technical
level.
The broader Topix .TOPX gained 0.5% to 1,711.80, just shy
of the 13-1/2-month high of 1,719.57 hit late last month.
Topix Core 30 .TOPXC , made up of top 30 firms on the main
board, hit a 14-month high.
Trump said negotiations with China were going "very well,"
fanning the positive mood sparked after a Bloomberg report that
Washington and Beijing were closer to agreeing how many tariffs
would be rolled back. Steelmakers were the biggest beneficiary of latest splurge
in optimism, with the Tokyo Stock Exchange's steel and iron
index .ISTEL.T gaining 2.9%. It was the top performer among 33
industry sub-indexes.
Nippon Steel 5401.T rose 3.8%, JFE Holdings gained 3.4%
and Kobe Steel 5406.T climbed 2.5%.
Semiconductor related shares also outperformed the
benchmark, including Sony 6758.T , which rose the most in over
a year. It later pared some gains to rise 0.1%.
TDK 6762.T rose 2.1% and Lasertec 6920.T gained 0.6% to
hit an all-time high.
Murata Manufacturing 6981.T rose 1.1%, helped by report by
Nikkei business daily that the company has developed new
electronic parts to be used for 5G smartphones.
Nintendo 7974.T edged up 0.1% and stayed near its
1-1/2-year high, supported by hopes of earnings boost from
Switch game console it will launch next week in China.
Among drugmakers, Astellas Pharma 4503.T gained 2.4%,
while Daiichi Sankyo 4568.T rose 1.8%.