Japan's Nikkei rises on demand for futures, a weaker yen
TOKYO: Japan's Nikkei share average rose on Friday, as a weaker yen underpinned sentiment, while demand for the index futures ahead of the fixing of special quotation prices lifted the benchmark cash index.
The Nikkei was up 0.47 per cent to 37,730.67 by the midday break and is set to fall 1 per cent for the week.
The broader Topix rose 0.56 per cent to 2,771.81 and is poised to fall 1.6 per cent.
The Nikkei received technical support ahead of the June 13 fixing of special quotation prices, used to set values on index options and futures, said Seiichi Suzuki, chief equity market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory.
"Foreigners, who shorted the Nikkei futures, bought them back ahead of the fixing day, which also lifted the Nikkei index," he said.
The Nikkei average futures rose 0.59 per cent.
A weaker yen was also a support for local equities, said Shigetoshi Kamada, general manager at the research department at Tachibana Securities.
The yen was last traded down 0.23 per cent at 143.885 per dollar.
Chip-related heavyweights Tokyo Electron and Advantest rose 1.28 per cent and 0.98 per cent, respectively.
Automakers rose, with Honda Motor and Nissan Motor gaining 1.19 per cent and 1.38 per cent, respectively, while Toyota Motor inched up 0.17 per cent.
Flea market app operator Mercari jumped 5.94 per cent to become the top percentage gainer on the Nikkei, while Oriental Land, the operator of Tokyo Disneyland, rose 2.95 per cent.
"When caution persists over the upside of the Nikkei, investors, particularly individuals, tend to look at smaller and domestic-led companies," said Tachibana Securities Kamada.
Panasonic Holdings, a supplier of batteries for Tesla, lost 3.58 per cent after Tesla shares plunged 14.3 per cent
Shares of ispace were untraded after the moon exploration company said that its uncrewed moon lander likely crashed onto the moon's surface during its lunar touchdown attempt. The stock reached to a limit-low of 744 yen.
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