TOKYO, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average rose 1.7 percent to book a one-month closing high on Thursday, lifted by exporters such as Kyocera Corp as investors played catch-up after returning from a string of public holidays.
The benchmark Nikkei gained 173.68 points to 10,544.22, its highest finish since Aug. 26. It dipped 0.7 percent last week.
The broader Topix added 1.2 percent to 950.20.
But Japan Airlines and consumer lender Aiful continued to be dogged by negative news.
JAL tumbled nearly 16 percent after sources said the company might be broken up and public broadcaster NHK reported it is planning to seek a taxpayer-funded bailout to overhaul its operations.
Aiful shares plunged about 24 percent after the lender said it would halve its workforce and slash branch numbers as it warned of a $3.4 billion loss for the year to March 2010. (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi)