TOKYO (dpa-AFX) - Recouping the losses in the previous two sessions, the Japanese stock market is notably higher in choppy trading on Friday, following the mostly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark Nikkei 225 is moving well above the 39,700 level, with gains in exporters and technology stocks as the Japanese yen slipped to a 34-year low.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is gaining 233.42 points or 0.59 percent to 39,676.05, after touching a high of 39,774.82 earlier. Japanese stocks closed notably lower on Thursday.
Market heavyweight SoftBank Group is gaining more than 1 percent, while Uniqlo operator Fast Retailing is losing more than 4 percent. Among automakers, Honda is edging up 0.1 percent, while Toyota is edging down 0.5 percent.
In the tech space, Advantest is edging up 0.5 percent, Tokyo Electron is adding more than 1 percent and Screen Holdings is gaining almost 3 percent.
In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial are losing more than 1 percent each, while Mizuho Financial is edging down 0.2 percent.
Among major exporters, Panasonic and Canon are gaining almost 1 percent each, while Sony is adding almost 2 percent. Mitsubishi Electric is losing more than 1 percent.
Among other major gainers, Mitsui Fudosan and Sumitomo Realty & Development are soaring almost 7 percent each, while Tokyo Tatemono and Mitsubishi Estate are surging almost 6 percent each. Tokyu Fudosan is up more than 4 percent. while Murata Manufacturing and Taiyo Yuden are gaining almost 4 percent each. Lasertec, Nidec and Mercari are adding almost 3 percent each.
Conversely, Tokyo Electric Power is losing almost 4 percent and Seven & I Holdings is down almost 3 percent.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the lower 153 yen-range on Friday.
On Wall Street, stocks showed a strong move back to the upside during trading on Thursday, after ending the previous session sharply lower. Technology stocks led the rebound on Wall Street, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq surging to a new record closing high.
The Nasdaq pulled back off its highs of the session going into the close but still ended the day up 271.84 points or 1.7 percent at 16,442.18. The S&P 500 also climbed 38.42 points or 38.42 points or 0.7 percent to 5,199.06, but the narrower Dow edged down 2.43 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 38,459.08.
Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the downside on the day. While the German DAX Index slumped 0.8 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index slid by 0.5 percent and the French CAC 40 Index dipped by 0.3 percent.
Crude oil prices dropped from five-month highs on Thursday amid concerns the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for a longer period due to inflationary pressures. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for May ended down by $1.19 at $85.02 a barrel.
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