In This Article:
* Tokyo Electron gains 6% on share-buyback plan
* Electric machinery makers outperform
By Ayai Tomisawa
TOKYO, May 28 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei rose on Tuesday as gains in European markets improved sentiment, while shares of Tokyo Electron surged after it announced a share buyback.
The Nikkei share average rose 0.4% to 21,272.46 at the midday break.
Turnover on the mainboard on Monday was the lowest since December 2014, with fewer traders in the market as U.K. and U.S. markets were closed for holidays.
For Tuesday, turnover was expected to be thin again.
After U.S. President Donald Trump met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Monday, he told reporters he expected the two countries to be "announcing some things, probably in August, that will be very good for both countries" on trade.
On Tuesday, Japan's Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Trump's comment probably reflected his hope for quick progress in negotiations.
Hiroyuki Ueno, a senior strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management, said that as details of Japan-U.S. trade talks won't be out soon, the market's focus "is still on U.S.-China trade frictions. Investors are still nervous about the global economy."
"Economic indicators will likely move the market for the time being," Ueno said.
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday the global economic outlook is highly uncertain, and there are downside risks due to trade friction.
Precision machinery and electric machinery shares gained ground on Tuesday. Casio Computer surged 1.7%, Olympus Corp rose 1.1%, Hitachi Ltd soared 2.5% and Panasonic Corp advanced 1%.
Tokyo Electron jumped more than 6% before trimming gains and was up 2.7% at midday break after saying it would buy back up to 150 billion yen of its own shares.
The broader Topix rose 0.3% to 1,552.32. (Editing by Richard Borsuk)