ASIA MARKETS: Japan Stocks Gain For Fifth Day As Yen Falls Further

By Laura He, MarketWatch

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Japan stocks ended mildly higher on Friday, gaining for a fifth straight session, as the yen's continued weakness helped support the markets' advance.

The Nikkei Average rose 0.3%, capping the week with a solid 1.8% gain. The broader Topix Index edged up 0.2%.

Meanwhile, the yen (USDJPY) dropped further against the dollar to Yen107.22 compared with Yen107.05 in the previous session. Earlier on Friday, the yen hit Yen107.39 per dollar, its highest level in six years.

Internet and telecom giant SoftBank Corp. , which is a major shareholder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, advanced 2.3% following a 2.9% rally in the previous day. Alibaba Group started a roadshow this week in New York ahead of its widely anticipated U.S. initial public offering.

Media conglomerate Sony Corporation added 1.1% to its recent gains, as it had reached a deal with Viacom Inc. (VIA) for content partnerships.

Among other leading gainers, camera maker Nikon Corp. improved by 1.8%, auto maker Toyota Motor Corp. tacked on 1.4%, electronics giant Hitachi Ltd. zoomed 0.7% higher, and semiconductor firm Renesas Electronics Corp. snagged a 0.3% gain.

In other Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 0.3%, logging a six-session losing string, and posting a weekly loss of 2.6%.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.3%, with the Australian dollar (AUDUSD) falling to 90.48 U.S. cents from 91.03 U.S. cents a day earlier.

However, mainland China's Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.9%, and South Korea's Kospi Composite Index settled 0.4% higher.

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