* Nikkei sheds 2.3 pct as yen edges higher
* Dismay over contents of U.S. bank bailout sparks selling
* Resource shares sink after sharp oil fall overnight
(Adds stocks, details)
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO, Feb 12 (Reuters) -Japan's Nikkei stock average fell
2.3 percent on Thursday as investors disappointed by the contents
of a U.S. bank bailout moved to lock in profits, with exporters
such as Canon Inc <7751.T> hit as the yen edged higher.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group <8306.T> and other banks
slipped, along with tech shares battered by falls in their U.S.
peers. But Toshiba Corp <6502.T> bucked the trend, rising more
than 2 percent on news that it is taking a stake in Canada's
Uranium One Inc <UUU.TO>. []
While U.S. stocks recovered slightly on Wednesday, when
Japanese markets were closed for a holiday, they fell more than 4
percent on Tuesday on concern a reworked plan to shore up the
financial sector may not be enough to thaw credit markets and
alleviate the deepening recession.
Market players said investors, though disappointed by the
contents of the banking plan, were taking some heart from the
fact that Wall Street rose on Wednesday and that this was helping
prevent sharper falls.
"There's a lot of uncertainty about the U.S. banking bailout,
but it is large and there's no denying that it's at least a step
forward," said Hideyuki Ishiguro, a supervisor at the investment
strategy department of Okasan Securities.
"Gradually investors are becoming less sensitive to bad news
and looking ahead further. The situation last year was that
nobody knew what would happen next -- but that's changed now."
U.S. stocks rose in a choppy session on Wednesday after
lawmakers reached a compromise deal on a $789 billion stimulus
package seen as crucial to reviving the recession-hit economy,
with votes on the final bill possible as early as Thursday.
Other market players said that while the market mood appears
to have improved slightly, investors remain wary.
"The bank plan really just seemed as if it was putting things
off rather than dealing with them, and now markets are waiting
for the economic stimulus plan to be enacted, so it's hard to bid
the market higher," said Yutaka Miura, chief technical analyst at
Shinko Securities.
"The selling is less profit-taking than 'selling in dismay'."
The benchmark Nikkei <> shed 186.27 points to 7,759.67,
while the broader Topix <> lost 1.9 percent to 763.49.
EXPORTERS, TECHS
Exporters came under particular pressure as the Japanese
currency edged up against the dollar, which dipped roughly 0.2
percent to 90.15 yen <JPY=>.
Investors dislike a stronger yen as it eats into Japanese
exporter profits when repatriated.
Canon slipped 5.1 percent to 2,445 yen and Honda Motor Co
<7267.T> fell 2 percent to 2,205 yen. Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T>
fell 2.6 percent to 3,060 yen.
Tech shares suffered after their U.S. peers fell, with
Kyocera Corp <6971.T> losing 4.1 percent to 5,810 yen and Tokyo
Electron <8035.T> down 2.6 percent to 3,440 yen.
But Elpida Memory <6665.T> bucked the trend, briefly surging
more than 4 percent after the Nikkei business daily reported the
Japanese chipmaker has agreed to integrate its operations with
three Taiwan chipmakers in an attempt to survive a severe slump
in demand and prices.
Elpida later said on Wednesday its president was in Taipei,
but denied the media report, adding that no agreement was
imminent. [] []
By midday, its shares clung to gains of a mere 0.1 percent at
711 yen.
Toshiba Corp climbed 2.7 percent to 263 yen after saying on
Tuesday that it, Tokyo Electric Power Co <9501.T> and the Japan
Bank for International Cooperation will together buy C$270
million ($221.1 million) worth of shares in Canada's Uranium One
Inc <UUU.TO>. []
Resource shares slipped after oil fell 4.3 percent on
Wednesday after data showed a large increase in domestic crude
stocks and the International Energy Agency forecast oil demand
would remain gloomy, though losses were pared on Thursday <CLc1>.
Trading house Itochu Corp <8001.T> fell 4.3 percent to 448
yen and fellow trader Marubeni Corp <8002.T> shed 2.4 percent to
329 yen. Oil and gas field developer Inpex <1605.T> slipped 3.8
percent to 667,000 yen.
Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section,
with 901 million shares changing hands, compared with last week's
morning average of 929 million.
Declining stocks outpaced advancing ones by more than 3 to 1.
(Editing by Brent Kininmont)
