* Nikkei up for first time this week, strong yen caps gains
* Asia-Pacific shares up, European stock markets open lower
* Oil down on higher inventories
By Sanjeev Miglani
SINGAPORE, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Most Asian stocks rose on
Wednesday as earnings from two U.S. retail giants and a $39
billion takeover bid in the farm sector bolstered investor
confidence, but mixed U.S. economic data capped gains.
Japanese shares gained as investors hunted for bargains
following an eight-month closing low the previous day, but the
rise was limited by the yen's persistent strength against the
dollar.
Major European shares <> opened 0.4 percent lower,
with investors taking profits from one-week highs hit the
previous day, with energy shares likely to track weaker oil
futures.
Shares of global miner <BHP.AX><BLT.L> were in focus in
Asia, falling to 4.2 percent to A$38.51 on concerns that it may
have to pay too much to buy fertiliser group Potash Corp after
the Canadian group rejected the original offer.
The Anglo-Australian miner, sitting on an estimated $11
billion cash pile, is looking to capitalise on a resurgence of
the global fertiliser industry following a collapse in demand
during the global economic slowdown.
"It is just BHP; one big story taking out a lot of points
from the index," Ben Potter, a research analyst at IG Markets
said.
While the BHP sell-off dragged down Australia's main share
index and helped spur the Canadian dollar, investors elsewhere
in the region saw the takeover bid as a sign of confidence in
an otherwise lacklustre market.
The MSCI share index for Asia excluding Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was up 0.46 percent following gains on Wall
Street after retailing giants Wal-Mart Stores Inc <WMT.N>, and
Home Depot Inc <HD.N> beat earnings estimates.
Some analysts warned, though, that profits driven by cost
cutting did not demonstrate underlying strength in the economy.
In the latest U.S. economic data, producer prices
increased in July for the first time in four months, helping to
allay concerns about deflation, but housing starts rose at a
weaker rate than expected and permits fell to their lowest
point in more than a year. [].
Japan's Nikkei <> average closed 0.9 percent higher,
with investors buying shares on dips.
Market players said, however, it was hard to see the
benchmark index racking up substantial gains without a
sustained weakening of the yen. though a short-term rebound
seemed overdue after the Nikkei slumped to a 13-month low at
9,065.94 last week.
The dollar shed 0.1 percent against the yen to 85.39 yen
<JPY=>, slipping back toward a 15-year low of 84.72 yen plumbed
last week. "The trend of dollar-selling looks unchanged," said
a trader for a Japanese foreign exchange broker.
Investors are watching whether the Bank of Japan or the
government will act to stem the yen's export-sapping rise ahead
of a meeting between Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Bank of Japan
Governor Masaaki Shirakawa expected next Monday.
"Today we're seeing short-covering prompted by the
overnight Wall Street rise, but the main players are day
traders and they tend to dump shares fairly quickly when any
rises lose steam," said Norihiro Fujito, general manager of the
investment research and information division at Mitsubishi UFJ
Morgan Stanley Securities.
The euro fell 0.5 percent to 109.64 yen <EURJPY=R>, giving
back much of the previous day's 0.6 percent gain and slipping
back towards its lowest in nearly seven weeks of 109.07 yen hit
on trading platform EBS earlier this week.
The euro could come under pressure again if the market's
focus turns toward sovereign risks in the euro zone.
The yuan slightly rose against the U.S. currency as the
People's Bank of China set a stonger mid-point to reflect the
overnight weakness of the dollar <.DXY> against a basket of
currencies in global markets.
But dealers said the room for more near-term gains was very
limited as it takes time for China to gauge the impact of
weakening major global economies on its exports.
[]
Oil prices fell on Wednesday after an industry report
signalled petroleum inventories in top consumer the United
States were headed for a record, following an unexpected sharp
increase in crude stocks last week.
Gold gained on Wednesday, within sight of a 1-
