Japanese shares climbed Thursday as investors picked up cheap stocks, such as automakers, according to dpa. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 40.59 points, or 0.4 per cent, to end at 10,127.08 while the broader Topix index was up 3.29 points, or 0.38 per cent, at 862.07. Shares in Honda Motor Co jumped 1.71 per cent, Nissan Motor Co climbed 1.5 per cent and Toyota Motor Corp was up 0.43 per cent. Japan saw its first trade surplus in five months in February, a month after posting a record deficit, as exports jumped from the previous month and were down less than expected from a year earlier. On currency markets at 3:10 pm (0610 GMT) in Tokyo, the dollar traded at 83.32-36 yen, down from Wednesday's 5 pm quote of 83.65-66 yen. The euro was quoted at 110.33-36 yen, down from 110.85-89 yen late Wednesday, and at 1.3239-3242 dollars, down from 1.3251-3252 dollars.
