TOKYO, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average rose 2.2 percent on Thursday on a wave of short-covering as the Federal Reserve's monetary easing passed without causing ructions in the currency market and as investors took heart from solid U.S. economic data.
Analysts said foreign investors, including a big European name, were principle players behind the Nikkei's gains away from seven-week lows hit earlier this week.
In a broad-based rise, the benchmark Nikkei gained 198.80 points to 9,358.78, its best daily performance since Sept. 15, a day when the index rose 2.3 percent after Japanese authorities intervened in the currency market for the first time in six years.
On Tuesday, the Nikkei ended slightly higher, after falling as low as 9,123.62, its lowest intraday level since Sept. 9.
The broader Topix added 1.6 percent to 816.33, after the index booked its lowest finish in 19 months at 803.12 on Tuesday.
Markets in Tokyo were closed on Wednesday for a public holiday. (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Joseph Radford)