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| - Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei index inched up on Friday after four days of losses, supported by a cheaper yen and Wall Street gains on a spike in oil prices. The benchmark Nikkei index rose 0.01 percent, or 1.47 points, to close at 17,820.19 but the broader Topix index lost 0.36 percent, or 4.74 points, to 1,325.13. The Tokyo market benefited from gains in US stocks and a breather in the yen's recent rise, which prompted investors to buy on dips following declines. The benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average gained more than two percent on Thursday as oil prices spiked on hopes of US help to end a Saudi-Russia price war that contributed to the slump. But Tokyo's early gains were largely wiped out by growing concerns over a lockdown in Japan's capital. "The daily gain on Wall Street and an oil price deal were not strong enough to ease the virus concern," said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager at Chibagin Asset Management. "A lockdown in Tokyo is now realistic while the direct impact of the virus on the global economy is much bigger than originally thought," Okumura told AFP. Yoshihiro Ito, chief strategist at Okasan Online Securities, also said: "Prospects remain dark for the global economy." The dollar edged up to 107.89 yen in Asian afternoon trade from 107.81 yen in New York on Thursday afternoon. Energy companies shot up in Tokyo trade as well, with oil explorer Inpex jumping 2.62 percent to 632.2 yen. SoftBank Group fell 0.95 percent to 3,732 yen after surging on Thursday as the global tech investor announced it had terminated a deal to buy up to $3 billion WeWork shares as part of a restructuring of the office-sharing startup. Toshiba jumped 3.15 percent to 2,449 yen after it applied for a return to the Tokyo Stock Exchange's "premier" first section, recovering from massive losses at its bankrupt US nuclear unit. si/ric/amj
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