*Nikkei up first time in three days, led by exporters
*Credit Saison soars on news of merger talks with Orix
*Energy shares drop on sharp fall in oil prices
(Adds stocks and comments)
By Taiga Uranaka
TOKYO, Aug 5 (Reuters) - The Nikkei average rose for the
first time in three days on Tuesday, gaining 0.3 percent, as
investors picked up recently battered exporters such as TDK Corp
<6762.T> and Canon Inc <7751.T> on a softer yen.
Credit Saison <8253.T> soared more than 12 percent after
financial sources said the consumer credit company was in merger
talk with Orix Corp <8591.T>. []
But the market's gains were held in check by a big drop in
energy shares, with oil and gas developer Inpex Holdings <1605.T>
off 4.1 percent after a sharp fall in oil prices.
Despite the day's rise, market participants said pessimism
towards corporate earnings was likely to continue to weigh on
Japanese stocks.
"The market is still as if it's just out of a sick bed," said
Kazutaka Oshima, chief strategist at Rakuten Securities.
Japanese earnings season is well underway, with Mitsubishi
UFJ Financial Group <8306.T> and Softbank Corp <9984.T> among the
firms due to announce results after the close.
"There are growing worries about corporate earnings. Amid the
deteriorating macroeconomic environment, concerns are rising that
exporters like electronics makers and automakers have come to a
turning point," said Hideyuki Ishiguro, supervisor at the
investment strategy department at Okasan Securities.
Many investors are also expected to hold off making bets as
they await a U.S. Federal Reserve rate decision and accompanying
statement due later in the day.
The benchmark Nikkei <> ended the morning up 34.85
points at 12,968.03. The broader Topix <> gained 0.1 percent
to 1,249.09.
Electronics device maker TDK gained 3.4 percent to 6,320 yen,
after falling 8 percent over the previous five days. Digital
camera maker Canon climbed 1.3 percent to 4,860 yen.
FAST RETAILING DOWN
Fast Retailing <9983.T> plunged 6 percent to 12,000 yen,
becoming the top drag on the Nikkei. Investors locked in profits
after it said same-store sales at its Uniqlo casual clothing
chain in Japan marked the largest monthly rise in nearly two
years in July. []
Amid a poor overall retail outlook, Fast Retailing has been
attracting investors who expect it to continue to post solid
growth. As of Monday's close, the firm had gained 30 percent in
the past month.
"As blue-chip exporters are facing a slowdown, investor money
has been flowing into winners in the retail sector," said
Okasan's Ishiguro.
Credit Saison surged 12.2 percent to 2,350 yen and Orix
jumped 3.7 percent to 15,230 yen.
Inpex shed 4.1 percent to 984,000 yen and trading house
Mitsubishi Corp <8058.T> lost 2.4 percent to 2,900 yen.
U.S. crude futures tumbled on Monday as OPEC output likely
rose for the third month in a row in July, outweighing concerns
about Tropical Storm Edouard.
Trade picked up, with 1.01 billion shares changing hands,
compared with last week's morning average of 834 million.
Advancing shares beat declining ones by 857 to 736.
(Editing by Chris Gallagher)
