REFILE-Japan shares end higher as Dow hits record high on Biden transition

(Corrects to remove extraneous word from first paragraph)
TOKYO, Nov 25 (Reuters) - Japan shares closed firmer on
Wednesday, taking positive cues from Wall Street as the Dow
Jones benchmark scaled a record high overnight, with investor
sentiment lifted by vaccine optimism and fading U.S. election
uncertainty.
The Nikkei share average .N225 climbed 0.5% to close at
26,296.86. The index ended at a 29-1/2-year high on Tuesday.
The broader Topix .TOPX added 0.3% to 1,767.67, extending
slight gains from a more than two-year high marked in the
previous session.
The Dow Jones .DJI broke past 30,000 for the first time
and the S&P 500 also closed at a record high as investors
anticipated a swift economic recovery on coronavirus vaccine
progress and President-elect Joe Biden's transition to the White
House. /N
"The overall market is rising today, and cyclical shares are
being bought," said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at Monex
Securities.
The market, however, lost steam in the afternoon session due
to some profit-taking, market participants said.
Surging coronavirus cases in several parts of Japan also
dampened market sentiment.
On Wednesday, local media reported that Tokyo will urge bars
and restaurants to operate shortened hours following a surge in
coronavirus infections. Tokyo's call comes after the Japanese government on Tuesday
paused its domestic travel promotion campaign in the cities of
Sapporo and Osaka. Shares of restaurants and bars fell, with Watami 7522.T
and Royal Holdings 8179.T dropping 3.59% and 2.68%,
respectively.
Land transport .IRAIL.T sector also inched down 0.77%.
Shares of semiconductor-related companies benefited from a
strong performance in their U.S. peers, with Shin-Etsu Chemical
4063.T climbing 3.39%, while Advantest 6857.T and Tokyo
Electron 8035.T reversed course to end slightly lower.
Nissan Motor 7201.T jumped nearly 7%, boosted by a
combination of short-covering and hopes on shift to electric
vehicles after the company said its redesigned compact car would
feature hybrid technology system. The Mothers Index .MTHR of start-up firm shares bucked the
overall firmness and lost 2.1%.