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| - Tokyo stocks closed higher on Friday, extending rallies on Wall Street as investors await US job data to be released later in the day. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index grew 1.54 percent or 437.24 points to end at 28,779.19, while the broader Topix index rose 1.38 percent or 25.83 points to 1,890.95. The US market was boosted by hopes surrounding President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finishing at all-time highs. "Tokyo shares rose following gains by all three major US indexes," Okasan Online Securities said. "Investors are waiting for US jobs data," it added, saying they were also cautious in afternoon trade after the Nikkei hit the 28,750 level. In Tokyo trading, Mazda skyrocketed 18.51 percent to 960 yen after its third-quarter operating profit exceeded market expectations. SoftBank Group rose 3.47 percent to 9,081 yen while Uniqlo casual wear operator Fast Retailing climbed 1.30 percent to 92,210 yen. Sony jumped 6.86 percent to 12,450 yen. The dollar fetched 105.54 yen in Asian trade, against 105.52 yen in New York late Thursday. Japan's household spending in December was down 0.6 percent, against market expectations of a drop of 1.8 percent, according to government data released before the opening bell. kh-nf/kaf/axn
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