Nikkei up 0.3 pct as Kyocera, exporters gain on yen
(Updates to midmorning)
TOKYO, March 23 (Reuters) - The Nikkei share average rose 0.34 percent on Friday as investors picked up laggard shares including exporters such as Kyocera Corp. (6971.T), encouraged by a softer yen as the index regained lost ground.
Nikkei has now recouped about half the losses it booked three weeks ago when falls in Chinese shares touched off a global sell-off.
"Investors are buying technology and auto shares, getting support from the yen, as those shares haven't recovered losses, while stocks dependent on domestic demand have almost recovered," said Kenichi Azuma, equity strategist at Cosmo Securities.
Declines in the Chinese stock market and turmoil in the subprime mortgage sector have spurred a global market sell-off over the last month.
"The Nikkei will likely try for the 18,200 level, around this year's high, after going above 17,500," Azuma said.
The benchmark logged its highest point for the year at 18,300.39 on Feb. 26.
The Nikkei .N225 was up 59.09 points at 17,478.29 as of 0045 GMT. The broad TOPIX index rose 0.54 percent to 1,741.15.
The dollar was unchanged versus the yen JPY= at 118.15 yen after gaining 0.4 percent in the previous session. A weaker yen is a boon to companies that make the bulk of their sales abroad because it boosts profits when earnings from abroad are brought home.
Shares of Kyocera added 1.1 percent to 11,190 yen, while Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (7267.T) gained 1.4 percent to 4,260 yen. Among other gainers, Japanese drug maker Eisai Co. Ltd. (4523.T) rose 0.5 percent to 5,830 yen after it said it would buy privately held U.S. biotechnology firm Morphotek Inc. for $325 million, potentially boosting the Japanese firm's lineup of cancer drugs.
Shares of Dai Nippon Printing Co. Ltd. (7912.T) climbed 1.9 percent to 1,846 yen after the commercial printing company said it would buy back up to 25 million of its own shares, or 54 billion yen worth, from the market through the end of July. [ID:nT166482]
