Japan stocks higher at close of trade; Nikkei 225 up 0.25%

Investing.com – Japan stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Gas&Water, Shipbuilding and Banking sectors led shares higher.

At the close in Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 added 0.25%.

The best performers of the session on the Nikkei 225 were Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. (TYO:9532), which rose 7.79% or 249.00 points to trade at 3,446.00 at the close. Meanwhile, Taisei Corp. (TYO:1801) added 5.52% or 288.00 points to end at 5,508.00 and Kajima Corp. (TYO:1812) was up 4.81% or 144.00 points to 3,137.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Keisei Electric Railway Co., Ltd. (TYO:9009), which fell 8.78% or 623.00 points to trade at 6,476.00 at the close. Isuzu Motors, Ltd. (TYO:7202) declined 3.67% or 75.00 points to end at 1,971.00 and Tokyo Tatemono Co., Ltd. (TYO:8804) was down 3.53% or 78.50 points to 2,143.50.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange by 2137 to 1485 and 248 ended unchanged.

Shares in Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. (TYO:9532) rose to 5-year highs; gaining 7.79% or 249.00 to 3,446.00. Shares in Kajima Corp. (TYO:1812) rose to 5-year highs; up 4.81% or 144.00 to 3,137.00.

The Nikkei Volatility, which measures the implied volatility of Nikkei 225 options, was up 2.40% to 20.87.

Crude oil for April delivery was up 0.84% or 0.66 to $79.59 a barrel. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Brent oil for delivery in May rose 0.31% or 0.26 to hit $83.53 a barrel, while the April Gold Futures contract rose 0.04% or 0.80 to trade at $2,166.00 a troy ounce.

USD/JPY was down 0.06% to 147.93, while EUR/JPY fell 0.09% to 161.94.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.00% at 102.77.