2013.04.1901:30:33UTC+00Japan stocks inconsistent, face weekly decline

Japanese blue-chips were changeable in early trading Friday, with the benchmark Nikkei Stock Average likely to post its first weekly loss in four weeks. The Nikkei Average started the trading 0.4% higher, but lost grip of gains to slip fractionally to 13,216.69. The broader Topix also stepped back to gave up 0.5%. Energy shares failed to get an increase from oil futures' rise above $87 a barrel overnight, with Inpex Corp. lower by 0.4% and JX Holdings Inc. missed 1%. Toyota Motor Corp. retreated 0.9%. But moving higher were shares of Sharp Corp., higher by 1.8%, as the company will supply Samsung Electronics Co. with energy-saving LCD panels for notebook computers, according to a report from the Nikkei business daily.