Berlin - Japan's N

Tokyo - Tokyo stocks ended morning trading higher Monday as investors bought back battered shares in the financial and real estate sectors.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 231.06 points, or 1.77 per cent, to 13,250.47.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was also up 26.37 points, or 2.11 per cent, at 1,273.68.

The Tokyo market opened lower, but investors looking for bargains scooped up shares, prompting a recovery.

Tokyo - Nearly 5,000 people were expected to gather at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan arena Friday to commemorate the country's 3.1 million war dead and the end of World War II.

Japanese Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda, Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko were to attend the ceremony. The oldest person to participate was expected to be 94 as the generation of people who experienced the war ages.

Meanwhile, Farm Minister Seiichi Ota, Justice Minister Okiharu Yasuoka, and former prime ministers Junichiro Koizumi and Shinzo Abe visited the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, which is dedicated to Japan's war dead.

Tokyo - Tokyo stocks ended Friday morning trading slightly higher on a fall in US crude oil prices and the US dollar's advance against the yen.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average inched up 13.37 points, or 0.1 per cent, to 12,970.17.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was slightly up 0.73 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 1,239.66.

While export-oriented issued were helped by a stronger dollar, gains were limited because of lingering concerns over the real-estate sector.

Tokyo - Tokyo stocks opened mod