Nikkei rises 0.3 pct, exporters up, tracking Wall St

Mon May 12, 2008 9:12pm EDT
 
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(Updates to midmorning)

TOKYO, May 13 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average edged up 0.3 percent on Tuesday, tracking overnight gains on Wall Street, led by exporters such as Canon Inc (7751.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) on a softer yen.

The market also got a lift from Dentsu Inc (4324.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) after Japan's top advertising company announced that it would spend up to 60 billion yen ($580 million) to buy back nearly 11 percent of its own stock.

Bank shares such as Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) climbed after struggling bond insurer MBIA Inc (MBI.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) posted a huge loss but beat expectations.

"The Tokyo market rose following Wall Street's gains, and investors bought up firms with good results," said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, group manager of the investment research department at SMBC Friend Securities.

Still, rises were limited as investors were quick to lock in recent gains, with resistance seen for the Nikkei average at the five-day moving average of around 13,800.

As of 0051 GMT, the benchmark Nikkei average .N225 was up 42.90 points at 13,786.26. The broader TOPIX index gained 0.5 percent to 1,349.44.

Digital camera maker Canon rose 2.1 percent to 5,370 yen, the biggest contributor to the Nikkei.

The dollar traded at 103.80 yen <JPY=>, down a bit from late New York trade but comfortably above Monday's low hit below 103.  Continued...

 

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