Japanese stocks edged up on Monday though were some distance from recouping sharp losses suffered last week, with an upbeat Bank of Japan survey failing to overcome lingering worries about the outlook for exporters.

The Nikkei's gained 0.4 per cent to 18,983.23, not so far from a seven-week closing low of 18,909.26 hit last Friday.

A closely watched central bank survey showed that Japanese big manufacturers' business sentiment improved for a second straight quarter to a 1-1/2-year high in March, and was slightly lower than market expectations.

Market participants say that although the overall result was positive, worries about the outlook for sectors such as automakers tempered the enthusiasm.

Indeed, US President Donald Trump's protectionist stance appeared to weigh on big automakers' outlook, the BOJ survey showed, with the sub-index at plus 9, down 9 points from three months ago.

Trading in Toshiba Corp also tempered the mood. The stock stumbled 5.5 per cent and was the most traded by turnover after sources told Reuters that the troubled Japanese conglomerate would likely miss a third deadline to report its quarterly business result.

The broader Topix added 0.3 per cent to 1,517.03 and the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 rose 0.3 per cent to 13,564.68.