The Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.9% to below 39,300 while the broader Topix INdex lost 0.6% to 2,720 on Friday, with both benchmarks sliding for the third straight session and heading toward their second straight weekly drop. Investor sentiment turned cautious ahead of the US jobs report, which could influence the Federal Reserve's monetary policy outlook for the year. Global stocks also faced pressure on Thursday after the release of the latest Fed minutes, which pointed to a potential slowdown in the pace of policy easing due to ongoing concerns over inflation.

Domestically, Japan's real household spending fell 0.4% year-on-year in November, missing expectations of a 0.6% decline. In corporate news, shares of Fast Retailing, the owner of Uniqlo, tumbled 7% after reporting weaker-than-expected results in China, despite posting higher-than-anticipated profits and revenue.(Cay) newsmaker23

Source: Trading Economi