TOKYO: Tokyo stocks have ended 0.12 per cent higher as concern about Greece’s troubled debt reform talks capped early gains driven by upbeat US retail sales data.
The Nikkei 225 index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange gained 24.11 points to close at 20,407.08, while the Topix index of all first-section shares was up 0.16 per cent, or 2.60 points, to 1,651.48.
The International Monetary Fund pulled out of crunch talks between Greece and its creditors Thursday, saying a deal was still far off after a five-month stalemate.
The fund announced its officials had returned to Washington from Brussels and that the “ball is very much in Greece’s court right now”, adding key disagreements were on pensions, taxes and financing
Greece must reach a compromise with its creditors – the IMF, European Commission and European Central Bank – before the end of the month to unlock much-needed cash to service its debts.
Failure to do so will lead it to default and possibly exit the eurozone.
“The fact the IMF walked out of talks overnight and flew straight back to the States doesn’t help sentiment or give you confidence a deal will be done … This will get messy,” Evan Lucas, an IG markets strategist in Melbourne, wrote in a client note.
However, investors cheered news that Japan’s industrial production in April was revised upward to a month-on-month rise of 1.2 per cent from a preliminary 1.0 per cent.
