Tokyo stocks closed mixed Friday, with investors taking profits from heavyweight technology shares, while bargain hunting in other sectors helped offset some of the losses.
The benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average ended down 76.55 points, or 0.12 percent, from Thursday at 65,606.71.
The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 19.08 points, or 0.47 percent, higher at 4,074.93.
The Nikkei index fell in the morning session, as investors lacked fresh market catalysts after earnings announcements from major companies largely concluded. Sentiment was also weighed down by a rise in West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures above 75 U.S. dollars per barrel.
Meanwhile, investors shifted funds from technology stocks into other sectors, helping support the broader market, analysts said.
Stocks were lifted in the afternoon, with buybacks in artificial intelligence- and semiconductor-related shares gaining momentum after Fujikura Ltd., a major supplier of cables for AI data centers, raised its forecast for the current fiscal year in its latest earnings results released during the session.
Tokyo stocks end mixed
Tokyo stocks end mixed
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation into Tesla's certification that its new Cybercab meets all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).
The probe, formally designated as an Audit Query, was opened on Sept. 3 and covers an estimated 1,000 Cybercab vehicles, according to an NHTSA investigation document made public on Friday. It will examine the process and technical data Tesla relied upon when certifying the Cybercab, as well as related issues. Tesla began commercial deployment of a small number of Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas, on Thursday and notified the agency that it had certified the vehicles as compliant with all applicable FMVSS. Tesla also told the NHTSA that it plans to gradually expand commercial deployment of the Cybercab to include additional vehicles and locations.
The vehicles lack permanently attached conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel and mirrors, according to the NHTSA.
The agency said the inquiry will examine, among other issues, the extent to which Tesla's certification depended on determinations that certain FMVSS are inapplicable to the Cybercab.
In the United States, the NHTSA establishes vehicle performance requirements, while automakers must certify that their vehicles meet applicable standards before entering the U.S. market, subject to agency oversight to confirm compliance. The NHTSA said it conducts investigations when certified vehicles appear not to adhere to those requirements.
U.S. regulator opens probe into Tesla Cybercab self-certification
