The average of 225 selected issues listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's Prime section advanced 656.23 points, or 2.40%, to end at 28,041. The market extended gains for the third straight session through March 29, helping to secure dividend rights for fiscal 2022 through Friday.
The market bounced back on the final day of the fiscal year as investors worried about the banking sector, with the Nikkei taking 28,000 for the first time in three weeks, despite the fact that it suffered a setback on Thursday due to ex-dividend selling.
The Nikkei is expected to move between 27,500 and 28,500 this week, analysts and brokers said.
Masayuki Otani, chief market analyst at Securities Japan Inc. said the market will be pressured by profit-taking but at the same time its downside will remain firm.
Otani said that stocks are likely to seesaw while investors are paying attention to how global markets react to economic data and the fluctuations of the dollar-yen rate.
The Bank of Japan's tankan quarterly business sentiment survey for March is due out Monday and the Institute for Supply Management's U.S. manufacturing and non-manufacturing purchasing managers indexes for March are due out on Monday and Wednesday, and the U.S. Labor Department's employment report for March is due to be released Friday.
Masahiro Ichikawa, chief market strategist at Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Co., said it remains to be seen whether the market will extend its rally.