Tokyo stocks closed 0.48 per cent higher on Thursday, with investor sentiment helped by a weaker yen amid lingering concerns over an ongoing nuclear crisis, dealers said.
The Nikkei 225 index added 46.31 points to 9,755.10. The Topix index finished 3.29 points, or 0.38 per cent higher at 869.38.
Trading moves associated with the fiscal year-end also buoyed the market, dealers said.
Beleaguered Tokyo Electric Power closed unchanged at 466 yen, at a near 50-year low after hitting limit-down levels in previous sessions.
Pressure on the company over its handling of the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is increasing, amid expectations of a mammoth compensation bill and speculation it may be nationalised.
TEPCO on Wednesday said it had secured Y2 trillion ($A23.44 billion) in bank loans, but warned this would not be enough to keep the company running amid concerns it may collapse under the financial strain of the crisis.
Under a worst case scenario, TEPCO may face compensation claims reaching Y10 trillion ($A117.19 billion), according to a Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst.
Nissan Motor closed up 1.0 per cent at 738 following a Nikkei report that it is considering setting up a holding company with France's Renault.
Trading resumed following an early TSE-imposed halt after the automaker said in a statement that there are no plans now to form a holding company.
Earlier the market welcomed a report by payrolls firm ADP showing US companies added 201,000 jobs in March, the third straight month when more than 200,000 jobs have been created, raising hopes for government data due on Friday.
Optimism in the strength of the US economy was boosted by remarks from three senior Federal Reserve officials who suggested the bank could bring an early end to its bond-buying program, known as quantitative easing.
The improving outlook sent the dollar higher. The greenback fetched 82.90 yen in early Asian trade, up from 82.88 late in New York on Wednesday. It later eased back to 82.76.
The Japanese currency was also pressured by talk of an interest rate hike by the European Central Bank, which saw the euro jump to 117.25 yen from 116.81 on Wednesday.
