AFP, Tokyo :
Tokyo stocks closed higher for a sixth day on Friday as focus shifted to the much-anticipated US-China summit during the G20 this weekend.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.40 percent to 88.46 points to end at 22,351.06, while the broader Topix index rose 0.48 percent or 7.98 points at 1,667.45.
“The Nikkei index reached the 22,350 level as shares were bought in afternoon trade. Most investors have optimistic views on the US-China summit,” Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, said in a commentary.
US President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping are due to hold crunch trade talks in Argentina this weekend during the gathering of world leaders. Japan’s factory output in October was up 2.9 percent from the previous month, after a 0.4 percent dip in September, official data showed before the opening bell, but it had little impact on stocks or currency markets. Separate government data confirmed the Japanese labour market continues to be tight, with the jobless rate in October at 2.4 percent, up slightly from 2.3 percent in the previous month.
The jobs-to-applicants ratio improved slightly to 1.62, meaning 100 jobs are available for every 162 job seekers.
The dollar fetched 113.38 yen in Asian trade, against 113.42 yen in New York and 113.30 yen on late Thursday.
Nissan rose 0.97 percent to 994.3 yen after a meeting of executives from the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance confirmed the stability of the partnership.
Mitsubishi Motors was up 0.57 percent to 696 yen. Their rival Honda gained 1.90 percent to 3,202 yen while Toyota lost 1.31 percent to 6,803 yen.
Steelmakers were lower after brokerage firms revised down their evaluations, with JFE dropping 2.22 percent to 2,001.5 yen. Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal edged up 0.19 percent at 2,076 yen. Pharmaceuticals were higher with Takeda jumping 2.28 percent to 4,255 yen and Eisai 2.15 percent to 10,415 yen.
Tokyo stocks closed higher for a sixth day on Friday as focus shifted to the much-anticipated US-China summit during the G20 this weekend.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.40 percent to 88.46 points to end at 22,351.06, while the broader Topix index rose 0.48 percent or 7.98 points at 1,667.45.
“The Nikkei index reached the 22,350 level as shares were bought in afternoon trade. Most investors have optimistic views on the US-China summit,” Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, said in a commentary.
US President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping are due to hold crunch trade talks in Argentina this weekend during the gathering of world leaders. Japan’s factory output in October was up 2.9 percent from the previous month, after a 0.4 percent dip in September, official data showed before the opening bell, but it had little impact on stocks or currency markets. Separate government data confirmed the Japanese labour market continues to be tight, with the jobless rate in October at 2.4 percent, up slightly from 2.3 percent in the previous month.
The jobs-to-applicants ratio improved slightly to 1.62, meaning 100 jobs are available for every 162 job seekers.
The dollar fetched 113.38 yen in Asian trade, against 113.42 yen in New York and 113.30 yen on late Thursday.
Nissan rose 0.97 percent to 994.3 yen after a meeting of executives from the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance confirmed the stability of the partnership.
Mitsubishi Motors was up 0.57 percent to 696 yen. Their rival Honda gained 1.90 percent to 3,202 yen while Toyota lost 1.31 percent to 6,803 yen.
Steelmakers were lower after brokerage firms revised down their evaluations, with JFE dropping 2.22 percent to 2,001.5 yen. Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal edged up 0.19 percent at 2,076 yen. Pharmaceuticals were higher with Takeda jumping 2.28 percent to 4,255 yen and Eisai 2.15 percent to 10,415 yen.
