Tokyo stocks opened higher on Friday helped by a cheaper yen against the dollar and US rallies after the Federal Reserve chief's comments on allowing inflation to rise above two percent. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index was up 0.24 percent or 56.42 points at 23,265.28 in early trade, while the broader Topix index gained 0.48 percent or 7.83 points to 1,623.72. "Japanese shares are seen rebounding as investor sentiment improved after US monetary policies were revised prompting traders to buy dollars," Okasan Online Securities said in a commentary. "But a wait-and-see attitude could grow as Prime Minister (Shinzo) Abe is scheduled to hold a press conference" at 5pm (0800 GMT), two hours after market close, it noted. The Japanese leader is expected to explain recent medical checks that prompted speculation about his health, with reports suggesting he will not resign. The dollar fetched 106.63 yen in early Asian trade, against 106.55 yen in New York and 106.02 yen in Tokyo late Thursday . US stocks extended a recent rally after Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell took a major step to stimulate the economy by saying he would not rush to raise interest rates and would accept inflation above the central bank's two-percent target "for some time." Stephen Innes, chief global markets strategist at AxiCorp, said concerns over simmering US-China tensions -- with the US imposing sanctions on companies involved in South China Sea development and China launching missiles into the sea in that region -- were offset by the fact that "the US-China trade deal (remains) intact." In Tokyo, banks were among winners, with Mizuho Financial rallying 3.52 percent to 147 yen, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial up 2.85 percent at 444.2 yen and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial up 2.82 percent at 3,138 yen. Among other shares, Toyota was up 1.16 percent but Sony was down 0.29 percent while chip-making equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron was down 2.68 percent at 27,380 yen. On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.6 percent at 28,492.27 points. kh/sah/gle