Tokyo investors eye US data next week

US manufacturing and jobs data will be among the key trading cues for Tokyo investors next week after growth data for the world's number one economy are published later Friday, analysts said. The results will provide a handle on the Federal Reserve's timeline for raising interest rates, a move widely expected later this year but largely dependent on a healthy economy. Earlier Friday, Japan posted a lacklustre string of economic data including a drop in household spending, as well as weak inflation and factory output. But upbeat sentiment kept Tokyo's benchmark index in positive territory, rising for an 11th straight day and marking its longest winning streak since February 1988 at the height of Japan's stock market bubble. The Nikkei 225 at the Tokyo Stock Exchange edged up 0.06 percent, or 11.69 points, to end at 20,563.15. Over the week it rose 1.47 percent. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares rose 0.05 percent, or 0.89 points, to 1,673.65 -- gaining 1.57 percent over the week. Despite the soft Japanese data, investors took the slightly better-than-expected consumer price numbers as a positive sign, although the weak spending figures held back Tokyo's upside, said Toshihiko Matsuno, senior strategist at SMBC Friend Securities. "The string of economic data today was a mixed bag of positive and negative numbers, but at least inflation beat market forecasts," he told AFP. Strong corporate earnings and a string of share buybacks among cash-rich Japanese firms has provided support recently. SMBC's Matsuno said Tokyo "could go up a bit more" but warned that "no markets can keep rising forever". Daiwa's Sato added: "The market appears to be overheating, but a further gain is still likely as long as trading conditions remain unchanged." Among the gainers on Friday, Yahoo Japan soared 11.65 percent to 556 yen after announcing a partnership with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. Mobile carrier SoftBank rose 1.12 percent to 7,447 yen and Toyota slipped 0.38 percent to 8,604 yen. In forex trading, the dollar eased to 123.85 yen after hitting 124.46 on Thursday, its highest level since December 2002.