TOKYO: Japan's Nikkei closed higher on Wednesday supported by tech shares, which tracked gains in their US peers, although telcos were volatile on news the government wanted to cut their mobile phone fees and stop handset bundling.The Nikkei share average gained 0.64 per cent to end the day at 22,362.55 after briefly dipping into negative territory early in the session.Weighing on sentiment were declines in US futures after Michael Cohen, US President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations and other charges.SP e-mini futures were down about 0.3 per cent as of 0600 GMT.Nobuhiko Kuramochi, a strategist at Mizuho Securities, said most investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the US-China trade talks, which are expected to begin later on Wednesday in Washington.But he said the impact of the meeting on market sentiment is likely be limited, with important decisions not expected to be made at this meeting."Since it's low-level talks, investors expect that this meeting will pave the way for November, when both countries' presidents will meet," Kuramochi said.Though dealers had earlier cited speculation that the talks could set the stage for a meeting between the two leaders, Trump has cast doubt on whether he will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping during an international Asia-Pacific summit in Papua New Guinea in November.Market analysts also said risk sentiment remains supported as the dollar stayed firmly above the psychologically important level of 110 yen.Tech shares outperformed, with Advantest Corp surging 1.6 per cent and Tokyo Electron soaring 2.4 per cent.Exporters gained ground, with Honda Motor Co rising 1.9 per cent and Komatsu Ltd gaining 2.4 per cent.On the other hand, Japan's top wireless carriers, KDDI Corp , NTT Docomo Inc and SoftBank Group Corp were volatile.
Some continued to slide after a senior telecoms ministry source told Reuters that Japan is aiming to force wireless carriers to cut monthly fees and stop bundling the cost of smartphones with wireless services.KDDI closed 1.9 per cent lower while NTT Docomo shed 0.6 per cent, making up some losses after falling as much as 3.3 per cent in early trade.
SoftBank dropped as much as 3.1 per cent in early trade but finished the day 1.3 per cent higher.They fell by up to 5 per cent on Tuesday after Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga was quoted by Kyodo News as saying that they have room to slash wireless fees by 40 per cent.Suruga Bank plummeted 19.5 per cent and was the biggest per centage loser on the board after the Nikkei business daily reported that an investigation revealed that the bank's improper lending amounted to 1 trillion yen.The broader Topix advanced 0.77 per cent to 1,698.37.