Tokyo stocks rose slightly Wednesday as investors took heart from the weakening yen and bought export-related issues after two straight days of declines.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 97.69 points, or 0.29 percent, from Tuesday at 33,451.83. The broader Topix index finished 10.40 points, or 0.44 percent, higher at 2,378.19.

On the top-tier Prime Market, gainers were led by marine transportation, pulp and paper and nonferrous metal issues.

The U.S. dollar strengthened to the upper 148 yen range in Tokyo, as the dollar was bought back following its slide to the 147 yen zone the previous day amid the view that the Federal Reserve is done raising interest rates.

The stock market was initially pressured by selling of tech issues after shares of U.S. technology giant Nvidia Corp. fell in after-hours trading as its robust earnings still fell short of some investors' expectations.

However, stocks later got a boost from the weakening yen, which led to buybacks of some export-heavy auto shares. A weaker yen raises the prospects of higher profits when overseas earnings are repatriated.

But gains were limited as investors increasingly wound down their positions in the afternoon ahead of a public holiday Thursday in Japan and the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States, analysts said.

"The market's two days of declines prompted investors to buy on the dip," said Toshikazu Horiuchi, equity strategist at IwaiCosmo Securities Co. "Moves on the currency market that suggested the dollar selling trend may be over also lifted investor confidence."

Some automakers rose after heavy selling the previous day, with Subaru climbing 60.0 yen, or 2.3 percent, to 2,684.0 yen, and Mitsubishi Motors gaining 8.1 yen, or 1.7 percent, to 490.3 yen.

IT firm CyberAgent jumped 41.9 yen, or 4.9 percent, to 888.8 yen, after robust downloads for its smartphone game based on the popular manga and anime series "Jujutsu Kaisen" released by its subsidiary Tuesday.

On the downside, major semiconductor-related firms Advantest dropped 207 yen, or 4.3 percent, to 4,570 yen, and Tokyo Electron slipped 225 yen, or 0.9 percent, to 23,945 yen, following losses for the U.S. tech-heavy Nasdaq index overnight.

==Kyodo

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