Nikkei subdued as investors await U.S. jobs data for Fed clues

* Nikkei has gained 2% for the week
* Exporters mixed, market to tread water

By Ayai Tomisawa
TOKYO, July 5 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei was little changed
on Friday morning as investors kept to the sidelines before the
release of a key U.S. jobs report, while oil and mining shares
underperformed after oil prices fell on global growth concerns.
The Nikkei share average .N225 was flat at 21,696.57 in
midmorning trade. For the week, the index has gained 2% after a
Sino-U.S. trade truce sparked hopes the two warring sides could
make progress in long-drawn out negotiations.
With U.S. markets closed for a national holiday on
Thursday, trading remained thin.
Investors are waiting on the U.S. jobs report due out later
in the day, which could determine if the Federal Reserve cuts
rates later this month or delays such a move to its next
meeting.
The ADP National Employment Report, which comes ahead of the
more comprehensive monthly nonfarm payrolls data, showed U.S.
private employers added 102,000 jobs in June, well below
economists' expectations. "Since the ADP number was bad, the market expects the jobs
report to be sour, but investors would rather wait till next
week to trade as jobs data can provide surprises at times," said
Nobuhiko Kuramochi, a strategist at Mizuho Securities, adding
that trading will likely be thin throughout Friday.
Exporters were mixed, with Advantest Corp 6857.T rising
1.1%, Panasonic Corp 6752.T falling 0.4% and Toyota Motor Corp
7203.T was up 2%.
Mining and oil shares lost ground after crude oil prices
fell on concerns over the outlook for global economic growth.
Inpex Corp 1605.T dropped 1.5% and Japan Petroleum
Exploration Co 1662.T fell 0.4%, while Idemitsu Kosan 5019.T
shed 0.6%.
The broader Topix .TOPX was flat at 1,589.91. Declining
issues outnumbered advancing issues 1,160 to 858.


(Editing by Shri Navaratnam)