TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rose Friday morning as sentiment brightened on eased fears over the European debt crisis and an overnight rise on Wall Street. The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange added 1.05 percent or 88.24 points to end the morning session at 8,473.83. The Topix of all first section shares rose 0.72 percent or 5.21 points to 732.36. Smooth bond auctions overnight for Italy and Spain lifted spirits, as did rises in other Asian markets. "Caution over Europe has slightly eased," Okasan Online Securities chief strategist Yoshihiro Ito told Dow Jones Newswires. While fresh signs of a US recovery also cheered investors, sustained worries over forthcoming European bond auctions prevented Japanese shares from shooting above the current range, he added. A relatively strong yen, at 76.75 to the dollar and staying nearly flat from New York on Thursday, continued to weigh on the market, said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, general manager of investment and research at SMBC Friend Securities. The strong yen hurts Japanese exporters by reducing their repatriated income while making their products less competitive abroad. The euro bought $1.2818 and 98.38 yen, compared with $1.2816 and 98.38 yen in New York. US stocks shrugged off disappointing retail sales and jobs data Thursday to add gains after a mixed day in crisis-mired Europe. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.17 percent to 12,471.02.

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