Tokyo stocks closed higher Friday, ending the week on a positive note as a weaker yen boosted automakers. The benchmark Nikkei share index recovered in afternoon trade after a negative start, while a G7 finance meeting kicked off in northern Japan. The two days of talks may highlight a sharp divide among the club of rich nations over how to rev up global growth, as host Japan seeks to win an endorsement for its position that fiscal stimulus is the way to lift global economic growth.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 0.54 percent, or 89.69 points, to close at 16,736.35. It gained 1.97 percent over the week. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares gained 0.51 percent, or 6.84 points, to 1,343.40. The index was up 1.76 percent on the week. On Friday, investors also weighed the global economic impact of a possible US interest rate hike as soon as June, analysts said, helping to lift the dollar against the Japanese yen.
The dollar rose to 110.20 yen from 109.96 yen on Thursday in New York. "The dollar-yen is back to the 109 to 110 level, and this will be supportive for Japanese stocks," Juichi Wako, a senior strategist at Nomura Holdings, told Bloomberg News. "In the end, we'll just have to wait for further (US) economic data." Japanese automakers were lifted by the weaker currency, a plus for their profitability. Toyota jumped 1.23 percent to 5,562 yen, Nissan climbed 0.91 percent to 1,045.5 yen and Mazda was 1.61 percent higher at 1,796.5 yen.
Shares of Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing, a market heavyweight, advanced 1.05 percent to 28,775 yen, while mobile giant SoftBank added 1.86 percent to 6,105 yen. However, airlines slipped following Thursday's disappearance of an EgyptAir plane in the Mediterranean with 66 people aboard. Japan Airlines fell 1.20 percent to 3,774 yen and rival All Nippon Airways lost 1.12 percent to 324.5 yen. Among those attending the G7 meeting this week are US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, Fed Chair Janet Yellen, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi and IMF chief Christine Lagarde. It comes ahead of a G7 leaders' summit in Japan next week to be attended by US President Barack Obama and others.
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