TOKYO: Tokyo shares lost most of their early gains Friday morning as concerns about Greece's troubled debt reform talks overshadowed upbeat US economic data.
The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange edged up 0.05 percent, or 10.35 points, to 20,393.32 by the break, while the Topix index of all first-section shares added 0.03 percent, or 0.53 points, to 1,649.41.
The International Monetary Fund pulled out of the crunch talks between Greece and its creditors, saying a deal was still far off after a five-month stalemate.
The fund said its officials had returned to Washington from Brussels and that the "ball is very much in Greece's court right now", adding key disagreements were on pensions, taxes and financing
Greece must reach a compromise with its creditors -- the IMF, European Commission and European Central Bank -- before the end of the month to unlock much-needed cash to service its debts. Failure to do so will lead it to default and possibly exit the eurozone.
"The fact the IMF walked out of talks overnight and flew straight back to the States doesn't help sentiment or give you confidence a deal will be done... This will get messy," Evan Lucas, an IG markets strategist in Melbourne, wrote in a client note.
Wall Street rallied on news that US retail sales in May rose 1.2 percent, better than the 1.1 percent gain forecast by analysts. The Dow gained 0.22 percent, the S&P 500 added 0.17 percent and the Nasdaq rose 0.11 percent.
"The good news for investors is that the US economy is showing signs of life," said Matthew Sherwood, head of investment markets research in Sydney at Perpetual Ltd.
"Improving US economic data was constructive for risk appetite, with retail sales for May expanding solidly."
Toyota rose 0.53 percent to 8,366 yen, factory robotics maker Fanuc added 0.54 percent to 26,250 yen and Japan's biggest bank Mitsubishi UFJ slipped 0.87 percent to 884.1 yen.
The dollar edged up to 123.47 yen from 123.45 yen in New York. A weaker yen inflates the profitability of major Japanese exporters.
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