TOKYO, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed higher Thursday as the yen's retreat against the U.S. dollar lifted exporter issues while eased concerns related to Korean Peninsula issues also added support.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average gained 127.77 points, or 0.61 percent, from Wednesday to close the day at 21,159.08.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, added 4.44 points, or 0.26 percent, to finish at 1,704.00.
Tokyo stocks got a boost in early trade on the yen's depreciation against the U.S. dollar, local brokers said, with exporters benefiting on increased profit outlooks and competitiveness in overseas markets.
Market strategists also said that foreign investors, sensitive to geopolitical issues, bought back issues oversold, with sentiment bolstered by eased concerns related to the Korean Peninsula.
In later trade, shares retreated into negative territory on a lack of fresh cues and ahead of long weekends in some overseas countries, but bounced back before the closing bell, market players here noted.
Service, food and machinery issues comprised those that gained the most by the close of play, and rising issues beat declining ones by 1,328 to 669 on the First Section, with 82 ending the day unchanged.
On the main section on Thursday, 1,324.42 million shares changed hands, dropping from Wednesday's volume of 1,412.31 million shares.
The turnover on the penultimate trading day of the week came to 2,550.7 billion yen (23.92 billion U.S. dollars).