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Nikkei clings to narrow gains, eyes on stronger yen

Tue Nov 10, 2009 9:15pm EST

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TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei stock average edged up 0.2 percent on Wednesday, with shares getting only a limited boost from a surprisingly large jump in domestic machinery orders for September and a forecast for a rise in the fourth quarter.

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The yen's advance against the dollar limited gains, with some chip-related firms such as Advantest Corp (6857.T) slipping after climbing the previous day.

Core machinery orders, a highly volatile series regarded as an indicator of capital spending, surged 10.5 percent in September and manufacturers forecast a rise of 1.0 percent in October-December, the first quarterly increase in seven quarters. [JPMORD=ECI] But analysts remained wary.

"Basically, expectations for economic growth in Japan are quite low compared to the rest of the world and Asia especially, and Japanese stocks just aren't rising as a result," said Hiroaki Osakabe, a fund manager at Chibagin Asset Management. In thin trade, the benchmark Nikkei .N225 gained 21.56 points to 9,892.29. The broader Topix rose 0.5 percent to 876.33 as banks extended gains.

Among machinery makers, Sumitomo Heavy Industries (6302.T) rose 2.6 percent to 427 yen and Daikin Industries (6367.T) climbed 2.5 percent to 3,250 yen. Industrial robot maker Fanuc (6954.T) gained 0.9 percent to 7,690 yen. (Reporting by Elaine Lies; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

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