Tokyo shares close higher

Tokyo stocks closed higher on Friday, extending rallies on Wall Street with investors eyeing the release of US jobs data later in the day. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index gained 1.27 percent, or 347.69 points, to 27,761.57, while the broader Topix index advanced 0.35 per cent, or 6.75 points, to 1,933.14.

“Tokyo shares opened higher following gains by Wall Street as concerns about tightening US monetary policy receded,” Okasan Online Securities said in a note.

Friday is “a positive day for risk sentiment ahead of US payrolls tonight on no new news,” said Tapas Strickland, senior economist at National Australia Bank.

The Tokyo market was also supported by gains of chip and electronic-related shares, analysts said. The dollar fetched 129.90 yen against 129.85 yen in New York late Thursday. In Tokyo trading, Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing soared 5.85 percent to 66,850 yen on strong domestic sales in May, while SoftBank Group rose 2.18 percent to 5,418 yen.

Chip-making equipment manufacturer Tokyo Electron jumped 2.39 percent to 59,960 yen while chip-testing equipment maker Advantest.

Automakers were lower with Nissan dipping 0.16 percent to 538.1 yen and Toyota losing 1.27 percent to 2,165 yen.

Source: eNCA

In other news – Shimza has returned to work after mourning the passing of his uncle

Shimza has returned to work after mourning the passing of his uncle. Taking to social media, the DJ shared a photo of himself and his late uncle.

He captioned it with a brief story of how he had to abandon his international gig to return home in other to prepare with the rest of the family members. Learn more