Japanese stocks closed marginally down on Friday to end in the red as treasury yields climbed, raising investor concerns that the treasury efforts to stabilize borrowing costs may only bring temporary relief.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 closed down 200.43 points, or 0.30%, at 66,016.36
Oil prices jumped to a one-month high as the US-Iran diplomatic deadlock deepened after the US Treasury chief Scott Bessent said the United States plans "the toughest sanctions in history" on Iran, raising concerns over Middle East oil supplies.
On the corporate side, ANA Holdings (TYO:9202) said that its subsidiary All Nippon Airways and Tokyo-based AI and robotics company Avatarin launched remote passenger support services across multiple regional airports using Avatarin's "newme" robots.
Also, S&P Global Ratings has placed an A long-term issue credit rating on Mitsui's (TYO:8031) U.S. dollar senior unsecured bonds, according to a Friday release.