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STOCKS-MARKETS-JAPAN-OPEN
Tokyo stocks open higher as US jobs data eyed
TOKYO, April 5, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Tokyo stocks opened slightly higher on
Friday, underpinned by a solid performance on Wall Street while investors
waited for key US jobs data.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 0.10 percent or 22.11 points to
21,747.06 in early trade while the broader Topix index was up 0.16 percent or
2.62 points at 1,622.67.
“Japanese stocks will remain firm” with the yen on a weak note and after
the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher, Okasan Online
Securities said in a commentary.
Profit-taking may emerge on stocks that had risen recently but it could
also provide a good opportunity to buy on dips, it added.
Investors are waiting for news on a breakthrough in US-China trade talks.
“Markets are expecting some sort of a political deal through (anticipated)
US-China summit talks,” Mutsumi Kagawa, chief global strategist at Rakuten
Securities, said in a commentary.
The market is also waiting for monthly US jobs data later in the day for
clues about the health of the world’s biggest economy and its monetary
policy.
The dollar was firm before the key data, changing hands 111.73 yen against
111.66 yen in New York Thursday afternoon.
In Tokyo trading in individual stocks, Nomura rose 1.29 percent to 424.8
yen after the brokerage house announced cost-cutting measures.
Nintendo gained 1.02 percent to 32,780 yen while Honda lost 0.51 percent
to 3,148 yen.
BSS/AFP/HR/0938