TOKYO, Nov 9, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - Tokyo stocks opened higher on Wednesday with investors encouraged to buy after rallies on Wall Street as the US midterm elections dominate attention.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.15 percent, or 41.56 points, at 27,913.67, while the broader Topix index added 0.05 percent, or 1.00 points, to 1,958.56.

The dollar fetched 145.38 yen in early Asian trade, against 145.58 yen in New York late Tuesday.

"Japanese shares are seen starting with gains," senior market analyst Toshiyuki Kanayama of Monex said in a note.

But trade will remain cautious as "investors want to see the result of the US midterm elections" and are also waiting on US inflation data due out Thursday for a pointer on the path for interest rates ahead, Mizuho Securities said in a note.

Polls opened Tuesday in crucial US elections that will shape the political fortunes of President Joe Biden.

Biden's Democrats are facing a gargantuan struggle to hang onto control of Congress.

Polls show Republicans are likely to win at least one house of the legislature -- and some see the prospect of split control in Washington as a scenario that lessens the risk of policy uncertainty.

In Tokyo, Nintendo dived 5.43 percent to 5,887 yen after it lifted its annual net profit forecast but said it expected to sell two million fewer units of its Switch console this business year than previously forecast.

Nissan was down 0.87 percent at 491 yen ahead of its earnings report due later in the day.

SoftBank Group was up 0.78 percent at 6,983 yen and chip-testing equipment manufacturer Advantest was up 1.75 percent at 8,140 yen, but Panasonic was down 0.77 percent at 1,219.5 yen.