Both the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index saw gains in Tokyo on Wednesday despite problems in communications caused by a significant earthquake off the coast of Taiwan. The Nikkei added 0.31 percent to 17,223.15, while the Topix gained 0.27 percent to 1,676.95.
Nippon Steel saw a second day of gains in a row as it added 0.16 percent to ¥643 on expectations by investors that prices will go up for the fourth consecutive year.
In the automobile manufacturing sector, Toyota was 1.93 percent higher to ¥7,920 on media reports that the chairman of Toyota and the chief executive of Ford had been engaging in discussion. The gains came even though Toyota minimized the talks and the possibility that they meant an upcoming merger or sharing of technology. Some analysts have suggested that Toyota might look for a cooperation agreement with an American carmaker in order to lessen the impact of its growing market share in the United States.
Among losers, Goodwill Group dropped 10 percent to ¥10,600 on rumors that the staffing agency could be the target of an investigation of its fees for its nursing care business.