Japan stocks higher at close of trade; Nikkei 225 up 1.92%

Investing.com – Japan stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Precision Instruments, Insurance and Mining sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 1.92% to hit a new all time high.

The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (TYO:9107), which rose 8.32% or 595.00 points to trade at 7,748.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Japan Steel Works Ltd (TYO:5631) added 6.18% or 168.50 points to end at 2,896.00 and Renesas Electronics Corp (TYO:6723) was up 5.48% or 134.50 points to 2,589.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Co Ltd (TYO:4506), which fell 2.69% or 10.00 points to trade at 362.00 at the close. LY Corp (TYO:4689) declined 2.64% or 10.90 points to end at 402.00 and Sapporo Holdings Ltd. (TYO:2501) was down 2.59% or 171.00 points to 6,421.00.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2092 to 1565 and 228 ended unchanged.

Shares in Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (TYO:9107) rose to all time highs; up 8.32% or 595.00 to 7,748.00.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was up 0.05% to 19.23.

Crude oil for April delivery was up 0.38% or 0.30 to $78.56 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in May rose 0.44% or 0.36 to hit $82.27 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 0.06% or 1.15 to trade at $2,055.85 a troy ounce.

USD/JPY was up 0.29% to 150.41, while EUR/JPY rose 0.34% to 162.62.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.02% at 104.08.