Japan's Nikkei rides tech boost to two-week high; BOJ decision in focus

Updates for market close

By Brigid Riley

TOKYO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Thursday as SoftBank Group and other technology stocks tracked their U.S. peers higher for a second straight session, while investors awaited the Bank of Japan's monetary policy decision due on Friday.

The tech boost helped propel the Nikkei .N225 to a fresh two-week closing high, ending the day up 0.8% at 39,958.87 after briefly rising above the key 40,000-point level.

The broader Topix .TOPX finished up 0.5% at 2,751.74.

AI-focused startup investor SoftBank Group 9984.T jumped 5.1% to provide the biggest boost to the benchmark.

The S&P 500 hit an intraday record peak on streaming video provider Netflix's NFLX.O quarterly report and President Donald Trump's private-sector artificial intelligence infrastructure investment plan. .N

Japan's chip-testing equipment maker Advantest 6857.T climbed 2.4%, while Fujikura 5803.T, which manufactures material for data centres, jumped 4.8%.

The Nikkei's fourth-straight day of gains comes ahead of the BOJ's decision on Friday, with markets all but certain the central bank will raise short-term interest rates.

The market has seen a "restrained" start to the year as investors parse out the U.S. economic picture and BOJ guidance, said Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com.

The Nikkei rose as high as 40,288.80 at the beginning of the year but slipped to a more than one-month low last week.

"The Nikkei has sought out excuses to push higher but is lacking the catalyst to break out of its range," Rodda said.

"Relatively attractive valuations and solid growth conditions will eventually allow this (climb higher) to unfold, assuming the U.S. inflation story and currency volatility remains stable."

Manufacturing giant Nidec 6594.T rose 3.8%, while chip-making equipment maker Disco 6146.T sagged 2.5%. The two firms publish corporate revenue reports on Thursday as Japan's earnings season gets underway.

Among other heavyweights, chip-making equipment giant Tokyo Electron 8035.T slid 0.2%, while Uniqlo parent Fast Retailing 9983.T gained 1% and TDK 6762.T rose 3%.