Tokyo stocks open higher as U.S. financial fears ease

Tokyo stocks opened higher Tuesday as fears over the U.S. financial system eased after U.S. bank First Citizens BancShares said it will acquire the deposits and loans of the failed Silicon Valley Bank.

In the first 15 minutes of trading, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 83.90 points, or 0.31 percent, from Monday to 27,560.77. The broader Topix index was up 8.91 points, or 0.45 percent, at 1,970.75.

Gainers included bank, securities house and mining shares.

At 9 a.m., the U.S. dollar fetched 131.21-24 yen compared with 131.53-63 yen in New York and 130.92-93 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Monday...