Tokyo: Nikkei flat in choppy trade ahead of US data; bank shares rise

[TOKYO] Japan's Nikkei ended flat in choppy trade on Friday as investors awaited the release of the US monthly jobs report, which will set the tone for the Federal Reserve's policy outlook, while bank stocks outperformed on higher yields.

The Nikkei was flat at 18,918.20 points after traversing positive and negative territory. The benchmark index fell 2.8 per cent this week.

The broader Topix gained 0.3 per cent at 1,514.99 and the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 rose 0.2 per cent to 13,576.07.

REUTERS