Nikkei up 0.2 pct as exporters rise on yen, US earnings

(Updates to midmorning)

TOKYO, April 18 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average eked out a 0.2 percent gain on Friday as high-tech exporters such as Canon Inc (7751.T) rose on a softer yen and receding pessimism about U.S. corporate profits after Google Inc (GOOG.O) reported solid earnings.

But many investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of earnings results from Citigroup Inc (C.N), said Mitsushige Akino, chief fund manager at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co Ltd.

"Investors in Tokyo actually don't want the market to gain too much today, though, because after Citi's earnings, the market could enter a short-cover rally. Market sentiment has become rather optimistic," he said.

"While Citi is expected to report bad earnings, it probably has plans to boost its capital, and potential rescue plans might have been discussed at the Group of Seven meeting."

Analysts on average expect Citigroup, the largest U.S. bank, to post a quarterly loss close to $5 billion.

The benchmark Nikkei average .N225 added 30.96 points to 13,429.26 as of 0042 GMT after gaining 3.7 percent over the past three days.

The broader TOPIX index rose 0.1 percent or 1.82 points to 1,295.14.

The dollar was steady from late U.S. trading on Thursday at 102.40 yen JPY=, hovering near a one-month high of 102.95 yen hit in early April.

Investors have been wary about a stronger yen as it curbs the value of their overseas sales when translated back into the Japanese currency.

Japan's exporters rose, with Canon adding 1 percent to 5,000 yen and Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) rising 1.6 percent to 5,090 yen.

Google posted stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings after the closing bell on Thursday. The Web search leader's shares jumped 18 percent in after-hours trading. [ID:nN17407580]

Top lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.T) added 0.7 percent to 1,011 yen after Merrill Lynch & Co Inc MER.N reported subprime mortgage write-downs of $6.5 billion, meeting analysts' expectations, and its shares rose amid hopes the world's largest brokerage was closer to seeing improvement. [ID:nN17461640] (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Hugh Lawson)