Tokyo stocks close higher on US jobs data

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks closed higher Monday after rosy US jobs numbers offered an upbeat assessment of the world's biggest economy.

The US continued robust job creation in July, with the unemployment rate falling back to a 16-year low amid strong hiring in restaurants and health care, government data showed Friday.

The healthy jobs report was a dose of welcome news for an embattled White House facing a stalled policy agenda and historically low public approval ratings.

"US companies continue to have (a) strong appetite for hiring as the economy and corporate earnings recover," Juichi Wako, a senior strategist at Nomura Holdings, told Bloomberg News.

Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.52 percent, or 103.56 points, to end Monday's session at 20,055.89, while the Topix index of all first-section issues was up 0.48 percent, or 7.82 points, to close at 1,639.27.

In Tokyo, Toyota shares jumped 1.93 percent to 6,339 yen while its smaller rival Mazda rose 1.36 percent to 1,711.5 yen, after the Japanese automakers announced Friday a capital tie-up to focus on joint development of electric vehicles.

On Friday Toyota also lifted its annual earnings forecast.

Panasonic rose 1.26 percent to 1,523 yen and electronic components maker Kyocera added 0.94 percent to end the day at 6,703 yen.

Telecom giant SoftBank climbed 2.38 percent to 9,023 yen ahead of its earnings report.

In Asian forex markets, the dollar was quoted at 110.70 yen, almost unchanged from 110.68 yen in New York late Friday, after the greenback rallied on the strong US jobs data.