TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese stocks gained on Wednesday, as investors gave the thumbs-up to a media report that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will delay a second sales tax hike to avoiding damaging Japan's economic recovery, and call a snap election to cement his position.
The Nikkei benchmark closed up 0.4 percent at 17,197.05, its highest since October 2007.
Department store shares outperformed the market as the prospect of retailers avoiding damage to sales similar to that caused by April's tax hike boosted sentiment.
J.Front Retailing Co added 3.1 percent, Takashimaya jumped 2.9 percent and Marui Group soared 3.2 percent.
The broader Topix advanced 0.4 percent to 1377.05, while the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 closed up 0.2 percent at 12,580.85.
(Reporting by Thomas Wilson; Editing by Richard Borsuk)
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