SINGAPORE: Shares in Japan rose on Monday afternoon as many major Asia-Pacific markets are closed for holidays.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.91%, while the Topix index rose 0.66%.
Kospi, from South Korea, was gliding over the flat line. Shares of LG Electronics rose about 0.6%. The firm announced Monday that it is closing its mobile business unit to focus resources on “growth areas,” such as electric vehicle components.
MSCI’s broader Asia-Pacific stock index outside of Japan traded little.
Markets in Australia, mainland China and Hong Kong close on Monday for holidays.
U.S. payrolls break expectations
In economic developments, the U.S. Department of Labor reported Friday that non-farm payrolls increased by 916,000 in March, well above the 675,000 increase expected by economists surveyed by Dow Jones.
The unemployment rate also fell to 6%, in line with the expectations of economists surveyed by Dow Jones.
Coins and oils
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, stood at 92,942, levels below the 93.3 seen at the end of last month.
The Japanese yen was trading at 110.57 per dollar, weaker than levels around 110.5 against the green dollar seen last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.7619, above levels below $ 0.756 seen last week.
Oil prices were lower in the afternoon of Asian business hours, with an international benchmark future on Brent crude falling 0.99% to $ 64.22 per barrel. US crude oil futures fell 0.91% to $ 60.89 a barrel.