The Nikkei is outpacing gains on Wall Street.

After nine years of sluggish economic growth, the stock market here is outpacing this year_s rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Investors are betting that Japan is back to doing what it does best: playing catch-up with the West, this time by embracing new industries tied to the Internet and modernizing old ones such as finance and banking. With two more trading days left in 1999, the Nikkei benchmark average is up 36% so far this year. The broader Topix index, which many observers argue is far more representative of the market these days than the Nikkei, broke through the 1700 level for the first time in 42 months yesterday, closing at 1701, up 57% this year. That compares with the almost 28% rise in the Dow Jones Industrial Average so far this year, though it is well below the 81% gain in the Nasdaq. The seeds of this surprising rally were sown by two events 14 months ago, when the Nikkei stock average was sagging near 12-year lows and many thought Japan_s banking system might founder, tipping the economy into depression.