Tokyo stocks rise ahead of Trump inauguration

Tokyo: Tokyo stocks rose ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration later Friday, but Takata plunged again on fears of a lengthy bankruptcy restructuring.

The airbag maker’s shares fell nearly 21 percent to close at 567 yen, on the heels of Thursday’s 17 percent dive.

Takata has lost nearly half its market value this week in the wake of a report that two rival suitors will propose a potentially drawn-out restructuring for the troubled firm at the centre of the biggest-ever auto safety recall.

Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei 225 opened in the red on Friday, but had risen 0.34 percent, or 65.66 points, by the close to end the day at 19,137.91. It was down 0.77 percent over the week.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues tacked on 0.35 percent, or 5.31 points, to close at 1,533.46. It fell 0.74 percent this week.

“I am fairly optimistic,” Makoto Sengoku, a market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Centre, told AFP when asked about prospects for the global economy under a Trump presidency.

“Of course, there have been comments from the Trump administration that are concerning. But the main scope of Trump’s policies focus on growing the US economy. I think this should help the global economy move in a positive direction.”

Japan’s latest earnings season gets under way next week with All Nippon Airways’ parent company and banking giant Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group among the firms reporting.

On Friday, Toshiba shares rallied 1.81 percent to end at 246.7 yen after plunging 16 percent Thursday on reports the huge conglomerate may book losses of as much as 700 billion yen ($6.1 billion) linked to its US nuclear power unit.

Brewer Kirin rose 1.28 percent to 1,895 yen after saying it was in talks with Heineken over the possible sale of its Brazilian operations.

Market heavyweight Fast Retailing, operator of the Uniqlo clothing chain, rose 0.21 percent to 37,240 yen, but Toyota fell 0.78 percent to 6,801 yen.

In forex markets, the dollar was trading at 114.73 yen on Friday against 114.84 yen in New York on Thursday afternoon.

Agence France-Presse