Nikkei rises 2.2 pct on BOJ's bold easing; reflation stocks gain

TOKYO, April 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average rose 2.2 percent on Thursday after the Bank Of Japan announced a sweeping monetary expansion campaign that will include heavy investment in REITs and ETFs, boosting reflationary stocks such as real estate firms and banks. The Nikkei rose 272.34 points to 12,634.54, reversing from early losses which were prompted by concerns over the U.S. economic recovery. The Topix jumped 2.7 percent to 1,037.76. The central bank said it will bring forward open-ended asset buying and extend the duration of government bonds it buys in its easing program, as expected. It also said that it will increase purchases of Japan real-estate investment trusts (REITs) by 30 billion yen ($323 million) per year and increase purchase of exchange traded funds (ETFs) by 1 trillion yen per year.