Tokyo stocks reverse losses to end higher

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks closed higher on Friday, recovering from morning selloffs prompted by a hawkish stance from the European Central Bank.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.73 percent, or 198.68 points, to end at 27,439.99 and the broader Topix index was up 0.55 percent, or 10.64 points, to 1,930.56.

The dollar stood at 114.94 yen, nearly unchanged from 114.95 yen on Thursday in New York.

"The Nikkei started the trading session lower, tracking falls on three major US indexes, with selloffs spreading among investors disheartened by the hawkish stance of the ECB," Okasan Online Securities said in a commentary.

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ECB chief Christine Lagarde on Thursday left open the possibility of interest rate hikes this year for the first time, as she opted not to reiterate the claim from December that the bank raising its ultra-low rates in 2022 would be "very unlikely".

After zigzagging between positive and negative territory, the Nikkei stabilised "on the back of strong Hong Kong stocks", Okasan said.

Rising US stock futures also helped steer the Nikkei toward positive territory, the brokerage added.

In Tokyo trade, Sony Group notched up 0.11 percent to 12,600 yen, while Toyota lost 0.69 percent to 2,277.5 yen.

Nintendo jumped 3.61 percent to 58,180 yen, a day after it revised up its full-year profit forecast despite having to cut Switch sales targets over ongoing supply chain issues.

SoftBank Group edged up 0.36 percent to 5,214 yen.

Toshiba dropped 0.63 percent to 4,723 yen.

The conglomerate announced Friday it would establish a new 300-millimetre wafer fabrication plant for power semiconductors to more than double its production capacity.