Japan's Nikkei index rose at the end of Thursday's session, ending a seven-day losing streak, supported by improved investor confidence amid Wall Street's gains at the end of trading yesterday and the weakness of the yen.
The Nikkei index ended the day up 3.4 percent at 36,833.27 amid widespread buying. The broader Topix index closed up 2.4 percent at 2,592.5.
The yen retreated after hitting its highest level against the dollar this year in the previous session.
Due to the impact of the (U.S.) CPI report, we are seeing a downward trend in the yen. This seems to be contributing to positive moves in Japanese stocks, said Hiroshi Namioka, senior analyst at T&D Asset Management.
In a boost to the dollar, Wednesday's consumer price index report pointed to some stabilization in inflation, crushing bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by 50 basis points next week.
Shares of exporting companies, which tend to benefit from a weaker local currency, rose.
Of the 33 sub-indexes on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the transportation equipment sector, which includes automakers, rose 2.4 percent and was among the best performing sectors.
Toyota Motor Corp rose 3.8 percent and Kawasaki Heavy Industries jumped 6.3 percent, leading the sector's gains.
Japanese technology stocks tracked their U.S. counterparts higher, giving the Nikkei the biggest boost.
The three major US stock indexes closed higher on Wednesday, supported by gains in the technology sector.
Shares in chipmaking equipment giant Tokyo Electron rose 4.8 percent, while Advantest jumped 9.2 percent.
SoftBank Group Corp., which invests in startups focused on artificial intelligence, rose about 8 percent.
Fast Retailing, owner of the Uniqlo department store chain, rose 3.8 percent, giving the Nikkei the biggest boost.
Of the 225 stocks on the Nikkei index, 222 rose and three fell.
