Nikkei closes at 4-week high on easing of eurozone debt crisis

Nikkei rose Thursday as market sentiment lifted by the improving eurozone debt crisis. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 84.35 points, or 0. 97 percent, from Wednesday to 8,823.25, closing at the highest level since Sept. 16. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 5.39 points, or 0.72 percent higher at 758.83. Gainers included the securities sector, the nonferrous metals and real estate sectors. Decliners included the electricity and gas, pulp and paper, and land transport sectors. The turnover was about 1,005.3 billion yen (about 13.05 billion U.S. dollars).