TOKYO: Tokyo stocks rose Friday morning, extending gains after hitting a six-month high the previous day while Nintendo plunged as investors were left underwhelmed following a sneak peak at its new games console.
Japanese equities’ upbeat start came on the back of a negative session on Wall Street where retreating oil prices and some disappointing company earnings hit sentiment.
The Tokyo market got a lift as the yen fell back, a plus for shares of Japan’s exporters as it boosts their profitability.
In forex markets, the dollar rose to 104.13 yen from the 103-yen range seen a day earlier.
Japan’s latest earnings season gets into full swing next week.
“With a recent decline in the yen, concerns over companies’ second-half results have subsided,” said Shoichi Arisawa, an equity analyst with Iwai Cosmo Securities.
“But there’s a good chance investors will be inclined to pocket profits ahead of the weekend, capping the upside,” he told Bloomberg News.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index, which closed at its best level since late April on Thursday, added 0.29 percent, or 50.03 points, to 17,285.53 by the break.
The Topix index of all first-section issues was up 0.13 percent, or 1.80 points, to 1,372.60.
Takata shares jumped 2.78 percent to 369 yen, despite an official report that the rupture of one of its recalled airbags has been linked to an 11th US death.
Nissan was up 1.33 percent at 1,025.5 yen and Mitsubishi Motors soared 4.85 percent to 562 yen after Nissan formally took a controlling stake in the struggling carmaker Thursday.
Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn will become chairman of Mitsubishi Motors as it tries to drive past a mileage-cheating scandal that hammered its reputation and slammed sales.
But Nintendo dived 5.49 percent to 25,470 yen as markets reacted to a preview trailer for a new long-awaited console seen as key to its business, as it competes with Sony’s hugely popular PlayStation 4.
In a three-minute video on its YouTube channel, Nintendo unveiled the hybrid machine that can be played at home and on-the-go, thanks to a removable screen like a tablet with the controllers attached.
“It’s a disappointing console,” said Amir Anvarzadeh, Singapore-based head of Japanese equity sales at BGC Partners.
“It doesn’t enhance the gaming experience when you have a smartphone in your pocket.”
