Japan stocks higher at close of trade; Nikkei 225 up 1.56%

Investing.com – Japan stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Steel, Retail and Paper&Pulp sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 1.56% to hit a new 1-month high.

The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Okuma Corp. (TYO:6103), which rose 5.42% or 300.00 points to trade at 5,840.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Daiichi Sankyo Co., Ltd. (TYO:4568) added 5.13% or 218.00 points to end at 4,468.00 and Mitsui&Co., Ltd. (TYO:8031) was up 4.13% or 166.00 points to 4,182.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Otsuka Holdings Ltd (TYO:4578), which fell 4.25% or 175.00 points to trade at 3,943.00 at the close. T&D Holdings, Inc. (TYO:8795) declined 0.93% or 19.00 points to end at 2,016.00 and Fujikura Ltd. (TYO:5803) was down 0.92% or 9.00 points to 973.00.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2583 to 968 and 284 ended unchanged.

Shares in Okuma Corp. (TYO:6103) rose to 52-week highs; up 5.42% or 300.00 to 5,840.00. Shares in Mitsui&Co., Ltd. (TYO:8031) rose to all time highs; up 4.13% or 166.00 to 4,182.00.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was down 3.78% to 15.78.

Crude oil for April delivery was down 0.09% or 0.07 to $78.09 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in May fell 0.07% or 0.06 to hit $84.69 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 0.48% or 8.90 to trade at $1,849.40 a troy ounce.

USD/JPY was down 0.27% to 136.40, while EUR/JPY fell 0.03% to 144.87.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.28% at 104.70.