Tokyo stocks lifted by blue-chip exporters, Apple-related names

TOKYO, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Japanese shares rose on Tuesday, shrugging off signs of worsening confidence among big manufacturers, with blue-chip exporters and Apple-related issues leading the gains.

The benchmark Nikkei average .N225 rose 0.7% to 21,916.74 points by the midday break, while the broader Topix .TOPX climbed 1.1% to 1,604.84, with all but one of its 33 subindexes trading in positive territory.

Japanese big manufacturers' business confidence fell to a six-year low in the July-September quarter, a central bank survey showed, a sign the bitter U.S.-China trade war is taking a heavier toll on the export-reliant economy. some analysts said sentiment did not worse as much as expected, and noted capital expenditure plans were holding up.

"The Tankan survey was positive, with the headline manufacturing reading well above consensus and only slightly down from three months ago," said John Vail, chief global strategist at Nikko Asset Management.

"Overall, it is good news for risk markets that Japanese companies are not pessimistic given all the external concerns," Vail said, noting that the outlook for both manufacturing and non-manufacturing was in positive territory.

Blue-chip exporters rose, with Honda Motor 7267.T , Panasonic 6752.T and Bridgestone Corp 5108.T advancing 2.3%, 2.4% and 2.1%, respectively.

On Monday, Wall Street stocks rallied, with all three major indexes rising, helped by gains in Apple Inc AAPL.O . .N/C Apple rose 2.4% after chief executive Tim Cook told a German daily that sales of its newest iPhones were off to a strong start, while JPMorgan (NYSE: JPM ) raised its forecast for shipment volumes. Apple-related shares were also in demand on Tuesday. Murata Manufacturing Co 6981.T , TDK Corp 6762.T and Minebea Mitsumi 6479.T jumped 2.4%, 2.7% and 3.0%, respectively.

By sector, paper and pulp .IPAPR.T , electric and gas .IEPNG.T and rubber products .IRUBR.T were among the top performers, up 2.7%, 2.3% and 2.2%, respectively.