Japanese stocks end higher as Wall Street, U.S. futures rally

TOKYO, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks closed higher on Tuesday, supported by strong overnight Wall Street performance and positive indications from U.S. futures markets.

The Nikkei index rose as much as 1.7% in early trade. But the index pared some gains and fell below the 27,000 psychological barrier, before rebounding and closing up 1.42% at 27,156.14.

The broader Topix rose 1.16%.

"There is the fact that U.S. stocks were up yesterday (Monday), but futures have also risen sharply — for example the Dow Jones," said Yutaka Miura, a senior equities analyst at Mizuho Securities.

Dow Jones e-mini futures were up 1.42% when markets closed in Japan.

"I think the buying has been driven in anticipation of stocks rising on Wall Street this evening," Miura said, pointing to similarly strong performance in markets like South Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.

Every sector on the Nikkei advanced, except energy and utilities. Tokyo Gas Co Ltd was the biggest loser, down 0.98%.

Of the index's 225 constituents, 188 advanced, 34 fell, and three traded flat.

Online healthcare services provider M3 Inc was the best performer in the Nikkei, rising 5.56%.

Recruit Holdings Co Ltd was next, gaining 5.05% after announcing a 150 billion yen ($1.01 billion) share buyback program.

Transportation shares continued to perform well following last week's relaxing of border restrictions for tourists. East Japan Railway Co gained 2.1%, and Topix airline stocks were up 1.51%.

Tech stocks were firm. Sharp Corp rose 4.98% and precision motors manufacturer Nidec Corp gained 3.34%.

"I think Japanese stocks are more influenced by overseas factors than domestic," Miura said, pointing to this week's upcoming earnings reports from U.S. companies like Goldman Sachs , Tesla, and Netflix.

"There's a possibility that earnings announcements could be an important factor this week," he said. (Reporting by Sam Byford; editing by Uttaresh.V)