Tokyo stocks rose on Monday, snapping a four-day losing streak, with gains led by builders on healthy orders and banks like Resona Holdings Inc on signs of reform. Shares related to hay-fever prevention such as mask maker Vilene Co also drew heavy trade after the government said it was drawing up emergency measures as the country braces for one of its worst-ever seasons.
But many technology stocks were weak as consumer electronics firm Sony Corp extended falls into a second session after a profit warning and amid concerns about disappointing earnings outlooks from US counterparts.
The Nikkei climbed 0.45 percent or 51.12 points to close at 11,289.49, erasing early losses and shrugging off declines in US stocks. The broader TOPIX index added 0.62 percent to 1,139.18.
With high-techs largely shunned, investors said industries mainly dependent on the domestic economy were finding favour.
The cheer over upgrades for regional banks last week continued and spilled over to their bigger rivals, with Resona gaining on a report it would pay back some public funds.
"We've got bad loans coming down and banks taking a more proactive stance," said Fujio Ando, a market analyst at Chibagin Asset Management. "There are a lot of expectations that their earnings power will improve," he said.
Resona, Japan's fifth-biggest bank, surged 5.1 percent to 206 yen and was the most actively traded stock by volume. The nation's biggest bank, Mizuho Financial Group Inc, put on 2.3 percent to 494,000 yen.
Shinsei Bank bounced back from losses in the previous session after the bank said US investment fund Ripplewood Holdings and its partners would sell up to $3.06 billion worth of the bank's shares. Shinsei rose 3.2 percent to 640.
Contractors were the next best-performing sector with Kajima Corp and others drawing buyers after many in the industry reported strong third-quarter orders last week.
Market participants also said ongoing expansion at Tokyo's Haneda airport was fuelling support for the construction sector.
Kajima jumped 5.3 percent to 455 yen with Haseko Corp up 3.5 percent at 270 and Obayashi Corp rising 2.8 percent to 667.
Yahoo Japan also made robust gains, rising 4.1 percent to 529,000 yen after Deutsche Securities on Friday upgraded the stock to "hold", citing stronger-than-expected revenue growth in the latest quarter and the company's move into online banking.
Trade was slow, with 1.36 billion shares changing hands, the lowest full-day total since December 29 and down from 1.41 billion on Friday.
There were more than twice as many gainers as decliners on the main board, 1,003 to 461.
"Market sentiment is basically strong with expectations for a reasonably good earnings season," said Kenichi Azuma, equity strategist at Cosmo Securities.
"But we should also note that while the indices showed decent jumps today, trade was thin with individuals behind most of the buying and the bigger players out on the sidelines," he said.
Among hay-fever stocks, Vilene jumped 4.4 percent to 710 yen and rival mask maker Nichiban Co soared 6.5 percent to 477.
Due to a long and hot summer last year, about 13 times more cedar pollen is expected to be released into the air in Tokyo this spring compared with last year, hitting some 20 million people who suffer from hay fever.
Sony fell 1.8 percent to 3,760 yen, extending a 3 percent fall on Friday after the company cut its full-year group operating profit forecast by 31 percent and lowered its sales target.
High-tech jitters also hit Elpida Memory Inc which slid 2.2 percent to 3,980 yen ahead of its third-quarter earnings.
After the close Elpida, the world's fifth-largest DRAM chip maker, said it swung to profit in the quarter on improved productivity and steady output growth but cut its annual outlook due to sluggish demand for chips used in digital electronics.
Comments
Comments are closed.