© Dukascopy Bank
|
"The U.S. economy isn't as weak as investors feared"
- Kenji Sekiguchi, general manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co.
Japanese stocks gained on Friday after better-than-expected manufacturing data from U.S. The Nikkei 225 rose 0.54%, or 46.37 points, to 8,643.75, while the broader Topix advanced 0.56%, or 4.13, to 744.14.
"The U.S. economy isn't as weak as investors feared," said Kenji Sekiguchi, general manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. "The focus has shifted temporarily away from Europe and toward the U.S., while investors wait for Europe to come up with policies."
Cabinet Office is to announce month on month change in core machinery orders on Thursday. Economists expect the reading to advance 0.8 percent in October, after 8.2 percent decline in September.