Advertisement
U.S. markets close in 1 hour
  • S&P 500

    5,261.27
    +12.78 (+0.24%)
     
  • Dow 30

    39,835.12
    +75.04 (+0.19%)
     
  • Nasdaq

    16,406.25
    +6.73 (+0.04%)
     
  • Russell 2000

    2,121.77
    +7.42 (+0.35%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    83.01
    +1.66 (+2.04%)
     
  • Gold

    2,239.70
    +27.00 (+1.22%)
     
  • Silver

    24.92
    +0.17 (+0.70%)
     
  • EUR/USD

    1.0791
    -0.0039 (-0.36%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.2060
    +0.0100 (+0.24%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2622
    -0.0016 (-0.12%)
     
  • USD/JPY

    151.3880
    +0.1420 (+0.09%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    70,557.88
    +2,031.34 (+2.96%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • Nikkei 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     

Nikkei buoyed by cyclical stocks; Nintendo jumps 16 pct

* Nikkei poised to post 3rd weekly gain

* Nissan falls on report it will cut global production

By Ayai Tomisawa

TOKYO, April 19 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei rose on Friday morning as Wall Street gains raised risk appetite and lifted cyclical stocks, while Nintendo jumped after Tencent won approval to sell its Switch console in China.

The Nikkei share average advanced 0.6 percent to 22,223.41 at the midday break. For the week, the index has risen 1.6 percent, poised for a third week of gain.

The U.S. market rose supported by robust economic data, while industrial stocks rallied after China's commerce ministry spokesman said there had been new progress in U.S.-China trade talks.

"The mood has recovered as the market has been able to confirm that a slowdown in the Chinese economy has hit the bottom and the U.S. and China are making progress in their trade talks as those were the market's main concerns," said Takashi Ito, an equity market strategist at Nomura Securities.

China's economy grew at a steady 6.4 percent pace in the first quarter, data showed on Wednesday, defying expectations for a further slowdown, as industrial production jumped sharply and consumer demand showed signs of improvement.

"While such macro data is improving, U.S. companies started releasing their earnings, and Japanese companies' earnings will be in focus later in the month as well," Ito said.

Machinery, sea transport and electronics stocks outperformed, offsetting weakness in defensive stocks such as railroad operators and utility firms.

Tokyo Electron rose 2.3 percent, Fanuc added 1.5 percent, Okuma soared 2.3 percent, Kawasaki Kisen advanced 1.5 percent. East Japan Railway shed 1.1 percent and Tokyo Gas declined 1.8 percent.

Shares of Nintendo Co soared after China's Tencent won a key approval to begin selling Nintendo's Switch console in China, the world's largest games market. The video game maker's shares were up 15.9 percent at midday.

Meanwhile, Nissan Motor dropped 1.3 percent after the Nikkei business daily said that it will cut global production by about 15 percent for the current fiscal year ending March 2020, which would be the steepest production cut in more than a decade by the Japanese automaker.

The broader Topix gained 0.3 percent to 1,619.19. (Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

Advertisement