Japan stocks climb, led by Nikon and exporters

(Updates to mid-afternoon)

TOKYO, May 13 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei stock average climbed 1.6 percent on Tuesday, on track for a second day of gains, as investors sought out Nikon Corp (7731.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and other shares with good results, while exporters rose on a weaker yen. Nikon soared 13.2 percent after the precision equipment maker said that its annual profit rose 32.5 percent thanks to sales of advanced cameras and chip-making equipment and that it planned a share buyback. [ID:nT207717]

Other strong performers were Fujitsu Ltd (6702.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which surged 12.6 percent after a ratings upgrade and forecasting on Monday that its annual net profit would more than double this year. "The market is now in a mood to buy, so investors are jumping on stocks that have had good earnings," said Noritsugu Hirakawa, a strategist at Okasan Securities. "Despite some lingering worries, there's a sense of growing confidence that the worst of the U.S. financial crisis is over, with the market also gaining confidence because the bulk of Tokyo earnings reports are now behind it."

The Nikkei .N225 rose more than 200 points to 13,957.19, while the broader Topix was up 1.5 percent at 1,362.38.

The dollar gained against the yen, fetching around 103.81 yen <JPY=>.

That helped boost exporters such as Canon Inc (7751.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which rose 3.4 percent to 5,440 yen, and Sony Corp (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which gained 3.4 percent to 4,810 yen. Another strong gainer was Dentsu Inc (4324.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), which surged 8.8 percent to 260,000 yen after Japan's top advertising agency said it would spend up to 60 billion yen ($578 million) to buy back nearly 11 percent of its own stock. Dentsu said its shares looked cheap after losing about one-fifth of their value so far this year. [ID:nT235656]

(Reporting by Elaine Lies, Editing by Brent Kininmont)