Tokyo stocks end higher after four days of losses

Tokyo stocks closed marginally higher on Wednesday, as traders snapped up shares at bargain prices after four consecutive sessions of losses.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.16% at 23 506.04, while the broader Topix index gained 0.16% at 1 763.86.

"After four days of falling... Japanese shares are in a good place for bargain-hunting buys, even though a higher yen is somewhat weighing on the market," Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, said in a commentary.

SoftBank dropped 5.37% to ¥10 125 after the Wall Street Journal reported the Japanese telecom giant and tech investor is discussing taking a majority stake in US co-working start-up WeWork.

"The investment could total between $15bn and $20bn," according to the paper, citing sources familiar with the talks.

Automakers were lower with Toyota losing 0.38% to ¥6 760 and Honda trading down 0.49% at ¥3 207.

Olympus was up 1.14% at ¥4 430 while market heavyweight and Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing jumped 2.34% to ¥59 800.

The dollar fetched ¥113.00 in Asian trade, fractionally higher than the ¥112.99 level in New York.

On Wall Street, the Dow closed down 0.2% at 26 430.57 as US shares faced another day of pressure from higher interest rates.