Tokyo stocks closed higher Friday as upbeat Chinese inflation data eased concerns about the strength of the powerhouse economy, while Uniqlo's parent company soared on expectations its profits would recover this fiscal year. The Japanese market rose at the start after two days of losses, with Thursday's drop driven by news that Chinese exports plunged a deeper-than-expected 10 percent last month while imports also fell from a year ago.
Tokyo investors are now looking ahead to next week when Japan's earnings season kicks in, with Nintendo and Canon among the firms reporting. "With Chinese exports declining, we were a little worried about deflation in China, but prices rose more than expected, and investors have been encouraged," Hiroshi Kato, a senior portfolio manager at Chibagin Asset Management, told Bloomberg News.
At the close, the benchmark Nikkei 225 index ended up 0.49 percent, or 82.13 points, at 16,856.37, after a day of see-saw trading. It slipped 0.02 percent over the week. The broader Topix index of all first-section issues rose 0.36 percent, or 4.88 points, to 1,347.19. Over the week, the index lost 0.25 percent. Shares in Fast Retailing jumped 4.97 percent to 34,800 yen. After markets closed Thursday, Uniqlo's parent company said it expected its net profit to recover in the current fiscal year after it dived by more than half in the just-ended business year through August. SoftBank, another market heavyweight, soared 3.29 percent to 6,710 yen after the mobile giant said it was setting up a $100-billion fund to invest in the technology sector in partnership with Saudi Arabia.