TOKYO, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed higher Tuesday, with the benchmark Nikkei index extending its longest winning streak to a record of 16 straight days, on investor expectations for robust corporate earnings from firms here.
The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average gained 108.52 points, or 0.50 percent, from Monday to close the day at 21,805.17.
The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, gained 11.67 points, or 0.67 percent, to finish at 1,756.92.
Local traders said that stocks lost ground early owing to selling to lock in gains, but buying picked up throughout the day on investors' hopes for solid corporate earnings for the fiscal first half that ended last month.
The yen's slide against the U.S. dollar also gave investors impetus to buy, as a weaker yen boosts the profit margins of firms with an exposure to overseas markets, particularly exporters, brokers here said.
Wholesale, iron and steel, and electric power and gas-linked stocks comprised those that gained the most by the close of play, and rising issues beat falling ones by 1,510 to 440, on the First Section, with 82 ending the day unchanged.
On the main section on Tuesday, 1,571.56 million shares changed hands, slightly down from Monday's volume of 1,582.07 million shares.
The turnover on the second trading day of the week came to 2,539.3 billion yen (22.35 billion U.S. dollars).
