Tokyo stocks end sharply higher on weaker yen

Tokyo stocks surged sharply Thursday as investors' sentiment was lifted by a weaker yen and a growing outlook that the U.S. Federal Reserve will keep its quantitative easing for the time being. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended up 309.25 points, or 2. 1 percent, from Wednesday at 14,876.41. The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange finished 14.36 points, or 1.2 percent, higher at 1,218.55. Almost all 33 sectors gained, led by securities, real estate, and warehouse issues. Mining companies were the only decliner. The turnover was about 2,521.6 billion yen (about 25.30 billion U.S. dollars).