(Adds comment, stocks, details)
By Aiko Hayashi
TOKYO, April 17 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei stock average rose
2.3 percent on Thursday as exporters such as Canon Inc <7751.T>
climbed after solid earnings from IBM <IBM.N> and other U.S.
companies reassured investors about corporate profitability amid
a weak economy.
Top lender Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group <8306.T> and other
banks climbed after results from JPMorgan Chase & Co <JPM.N> and
Wells Fargo & Co <WFC.N> heartened investors who had counted on
the big banks to fare better than rivals in coping with the
turmoil in the housing and credit markets. []
"Some shares rose in tandem with earnings from their U.S.
peers such as high-tech exporters, which got a boost from IBM's
results," said Soichiro Monji, chief strategist of the equity
management department at Daiwa SB Investments.
"Investors also feel encouraged to return to shares that had
been oversold, such as banks and property firms, as U.S. earnings
as a whole have been solid and their outlooks have been more
bullish than expected."
The benchmark Nikkei average <> added 306.10 points to
end the morning session at 13,452.23, poised to finish the day at
its highest close since Feb. 29.
The broader TOPIX index <> climbed 2.2 percent or 27.97
points to 1,299.85.
International Business Machines Corp posted
stronger-than-expected quarterly results on Wednesday and raised
its 2008 outlook, boosting its shares 2.7 percent and sending an
encouraging signal about technology earnings in the face of a
weak U.S. economy. []
One stock that bucked the market trend was Aeon Co Ltd
<8267.T>, which fell 3.5 percent to 1,260 yen. Shares in its U.S.
apparel unit Talbots Inc <TLB.N> plunged as much as 33 percent on
Wednesday following Talbots' disclosure that two major banks
would no longer make letters of credit available to the company.
[]
EXPORTERS UP
Japan's technology shares rose, with investors encouraged by
relatively upbeat corporate earnings in the key U.S. market.
Canon shot up 5.9 percent to 4,990 yen and Sony Corp <6758.T>
gained 3.6 percent to 4,340 yen.
Advantest Corp <6857.T>, the world's largest maker of
microchip testers, climbed 5.3 percent to 2,990 yen and
electronics parts maker Kyocera Corp <6971.T> jumped 5.1 percent
to 8,810 yen.
Mitsubishi UFJ rose 3 percent to 1,007 yen and No.2 Mizuho
Financial Group <8411.T> added 5.9 percent to 470,000 yen.
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group <8316.T>, the third-biggest bank,
gained 5.2 percent to 774,000 yen.
"Earnings at U.S. companies have generally been better than
expected, though worries about Citigroup's earnings remain," said
Yoku Ihara, manager of the investment information department at
Retela Crea Securities.
Analysts on average expect Citigroup Inc <C.N>, the largest
U.S. bank, to post a quarterly loss close to $5 billion on
Friday.
Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> rose 2.9 percent to 5,020 yen
despite the Nikkei business daily saying that Japan's largest
automaker would likely post a 20 percent fall in operating profit
for the business year to March 2009 on slower U.S. sales and a
stronger yen. []
Market analysts said investors have largely factored in the
expected fall in profit at the automaker.
Trade was moderate on the Tokyo exchange's first section,
with 880 million shares changing hands, compared with last week's
morning average of 840 million.
Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones by 6 to 1.
(Editing by Brent Kininmont)
