Tokyo stocks open higher on Wall St. gains as financial fears ease

Tokyo stocks opened higher Friday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street as fears eased over the U.S. financial sector after major banks moved to save another troubled lender in the country.

In the first 15 minutes of trading, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 126.52 points, or 0.47 percent, from Thursday to 27,137.13. The broader Topix index was up 12.62 points, or 0.65 percent, at 1,949.72.

Gainers included precision instrument, pharmaceutical and bank shares.

At 9 a.m., the U.S. dollar fetched 133.36-37 yen compared with 133.73-83 yen in New York and 133.10-13 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m....