TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese stock market is modestly higher on Friday as investors await the outcome of the U.S.-Mexico trade negotiations and the release of U.S. jobs data for May later in the day.
A report from Bloomberg News indicated the U.S. is considering delaying President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs on Mexico. However, the White House later said it still intends to impose tariffs on Mexican imports Monday.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is adding 58.00 points or 0.28 percent to 20,832.04, after touching a high of 20,890.63 in early trades. Japanese shares ended roughly flat on Thursday.
The major exporters are mostly higher on a weaker yen. Sony and Panasonic are adding 0.3 percent each, while Canon is up 0.2 percent. Mitsubishi Electric is down 0.2 percent.
In the auto space, Toyota Motor is adding 0.5 percent, while Honda Motor is down 0.2 percent. Among tech stocks, Advantest is higher by more than 4 percent and Tokyo Electron is rising more than 2 percent.
Among the major banks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is declining 0.3 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is edging lower by 0.1 percent. In the oil sector, Inpex is advancing more than 1 percent while Japan Petroleum is edging down 0.1 percent.
Among the major gainers, Chiyoda Corp. is rising more than 9 percent, while Screen Holdings and Yahoo Japan are gaining almost 4 percent each.
On the flip side, Resona Holdings, Concordia Financial and Chubu Electric Power are losing almost 2 percent.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the mid 108 yen-range on Friday. On Wall Street, stocks closed higher on Thursday, extending the upward move seen over the previous two sessions. Considerable buying interest was generated late in the session after a report from Bloomberg News indicating the U.S. is considering delaying President Donald Trump's threatened tariffs on Mexico.
The Dow advanced 181.09 points or 0.7 percent to 25,720.66, the Nasdaq rose 40.08 points or 0.5 percent to 7,615.55 and the S&P 500 climbed 17.34 points or 0.6 percent to 2,843.49.
The major European markets ended mixed on Thursday. While the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index climbed by 0.6 percent, the German DAX Index and the French CAC 40 Index fell by 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.
Crude oil prices rebounded on Thursday as fears about energy demand subsided a bit amid reports the U.S. administration will likely delay tariffs on Mexican imports. WTI crude for July rose $0.91 or 1.8 percent to close at $52.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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