Japanese stocks gained on Wednesday as the global bond selloff temporarily paused, while oil prices kept investor sentiment in check ahead of the Federal Reserve's rate decision the same day.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 closed up 438.90 points, or 0.69%, at 63,923.00.
Oil prices slipped following drone attacks by Iran-backed Houthis on the Saudi Arabian oil pipeline, disrupting operations at the Red Sea export hub of Yanbu as Riyadh cancelled some of its energy cargo consignments to European customers.
On the corporate side, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (TYO:7011) will invest 10 billion yen in AI technology developer Preferred Networks under a capital and business alliance, according to a Wednesday release.
Also, Sharp (TYO:6753) has started taking orders for AI servers equipped with NVIDIA technology in Japan as it looks to penetrate the business amid rising demand for AI infrastructure, according to a Tuesday release.