Japan's Nikkei index closed higher on Wednesday, supported by a weaker yen, but investors were cautious ahead of Nvidia Corp.'s earnings announcement later in the day.
The Nikkei index ended today's trading up 0.22 percent at 38,371.76 points, reversing the downward path it took at the beginning of trading, with the yen continuing to decline against the dollar throughout the session.
But the broader Topix index fell 0.08 percent.
The market is expecting very strong results from Nvidia, and any lower-than-expected results from the chipmaker could hurt corporate confidence in AI-powered performance.
The ceiling is very high, and depending on the results, stocks could swing wildly, Masahiro Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management, told Reuters, keeping Japanese investors largely cautious.
Semiconductor stocks were mixed, with chip testing equipment maker Advantest Corp., which supplies Nvidia, up 4.18 percent to post the biggest gain on the Nikkei by points. Lasertech Corp. rose 4.19 percent.
Meanwhile, Tokyo Electron, a chip testing equipment maker, fell slightly, while SoftBank Group Corp, an investor in AI-focused startups, fell 2.29 percent.
The yen fell about 0.4 percent to 144.47 per dollar by 0611 GMT.
Automakers' shares were mixed, with Toyota Motor up 3.88 percent and Honda up 0.7 percent, while Nissan and Mazda fell 0.65 percent and 0.16 percent.
Rakuten Group led gains on the Nikkei index, jumping 9.19 percent after several parties raised their target price for the group's stock.
