Overnight

For the fifth day in a row the Nikkei drifted higher surprising many as Brexit concerns subsided Friday after Bank of England Governor Mark Carney signaled the possibility of a rate cut later this summer that investors believe would help support the UK economy after last week's vote to say hasta la vista to the EU.

Most Asian shares responded positively with the Nikkei up 0.7%, the Kospi higher 0.8% and the Australian S&P 200 rose 0.6%. The Shanghai Composite chipped in a 0.5% gain and New Zealand"s NZX bumped up 0.5%. Hong was closed for an administrative holiday. For the week the Nikkei is p 4.8%, trading mid-morning at 15,701.6. So far Japanese shares have retraced nearly half of their losses since the Brexit vote. Japanese exporters were also positive. The Japanese yen weakened to 102.86 against the dollar, compared with Thursday's levels near 102.48 in the afternoon local time.

The WSJ reported: The British pound was at 137.24 yen, weaker than late Thursday’ s Y137.36 in New York. The sterling was at $1.3343, compared with $1.3311 in late New York trading.
The Bank of Japan’s latest tankan poll, a quarterly survey of business confidence, showed Friday the sentiment among Japanese banks hit its lowest point in three-and-a-half years in the April-June quarter while manufacturers’ sentiment remained solid in the second quarter.

Oil prices advanced during Asian hours, with global benchmark Brent higher by 0.68 percent at $50.05 a barrel, and U.S. crude up 0.58 percent at $48.6 and gold prices were up 0.49 percent on Friday, hovering at $1,328.30 an ounce, compared with highs near $1,335 reached in the previous week amid volatility in markets following the Brexit vote