Tokyo's Nikkei closes lower ahead of long weekend

TOKYO: Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index closed lower on Friday in cautious trade ahead of a long weekend, as worries continued over rising coronavirus cases.

The Nikkei 225 index lost 0.42 percent or 106.97 points to end at 25,527.37, but gained 0.56 percent from a week earlier.

The broader Topix index inched up 0.06 percent or 0.98 points to 1,727.39. Over the week, it climbed 1.42 percent.

The subdued trade in Tokyo comes a day after Japan's prime minister said the country is on "maximum alert" after logging a record number of daily coronavirus infections at around 2,400, though no immediate restrictions are planned.

Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike urged residents on Friday to stay careful, especially when dining out, over the three-day weekend.

"The market lacked a sense of direction in the afternoon session," Okasan Online Securities said in a note, adding transport-related shares were down due to the increasing number of virus cases in Japan.

Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing dropped 2.54 percent to 81,130 yen while Sony dipped 0.15 percent to 9,235 yen.

SoftBank Group jumped 2.61 percent to 6,749 yen. Automakers were higher with Toyota growing 0.69 percent to 7,352 yen and Honda rising 0.52 percent to 2,977 yen.

Airlines were lower after reports said people were cancelling their trips due to the growing number of cases, with Japan Airlines falling 2.24 percent to 1,916 yen and ANA Holdings sinking 1.24 percent to 2,532 yen.

The dollar fetched 103.77 yen in Asian trade, against 103.72 yen in New York late Thursday.

Japan's core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, was down 0.7 percent year-on-year in October, according to data released by the internal affairs ministry before the opening bell.