Nikkei recovers from 6-month lows on solid US data

Escalating crisis in Ukraine pulls the yen down

Japanese stocks rebounded from six-month lows on Tuesday after strong US retail sales data helped calm nerves amid the backdrop of an escalating crisis in Ukraine, pulling the yen down and supporting exporters.

The Nikkei share average ended 0.6% higher to 13,996.81, crawling back from previous day lows last visited in early October.

The broader Topix rose 0.3% to 1,136.09, and the new JPX-Nikkei Index 400 advanced 0.3% to 10,342.16.