Nikkei ticks below 9,000 level, shippers surge
10/02/2012 at 02:56
* Nikkei dips 0.2 pct to below 9,000 * Toshiba rises after U.S. approves new nuclear reactors * Shippers surge after tariff rise recommendation By Dominic Lau and Mari Saito TOKYO, Feb 10 Reuters - Japan's Nikkei share average ticked down to below 9,000 on Friday after Greece's political leaders agreed to a long-delayed deal on a second bailout, although investors remained wary about whether Athens can deliver the reformsShippers, which were battered last year on concerns over global growth and rising fuel prices, were in demand after transpacific container shippers recommended a general rate rise of $300 per 40-foot unit from March 15 and another increase in May to restore rates from loss-making levels
The sea transport subindex was the top sectoral performer, up 1.4 percent, also boosted by a sector upgrade by JPMorgan to "overweight" from "neutral"
Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd rose 1.5 percent to just below its 200-day moving average, while rivals Nippon Yusen KK and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd climbed 1.3 and 1.8 percent respectively
The Nikkei was down 0.2 percent at 8,986.08, with the 200-day moving average near 9,057 acting as resistance, while the broader Topix eased 0.4 percent to 781.78
"Foreign investors shed a lot of their position last year in a risk-off sentiment, so right now they're buying back Japanese equities. It's not that they're overweight at all," said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities
"Domestic investors would rather take profits now ahead of the March earnings season and the 9,000 level is a good level to sell for many Japanese investors." Trading was expected to be volatile with an option expiry
Toshiba Corp advanced 2 percent after the U.S. nuclear regulatory agency approved plans by Southern Co to build and operate two new nuclear power reactors through the Japanese firm's U.S. unit Westinghouse
Yamada Denki Co Ltd , a large discount home electronics retailer, jumped 9 percent after analysts said it was maintaining a high recurring profit margin thanks to effective management of cash discounts and a loyalty point scheme, despite declines in sales in the third quarter
Japan Tobacco , however, shed 4.1 percent after ramping up nearly 12 percent in the previous three sessions after the company revised up its annual guidance and dividend outlook on Monday
Investors also locked in profit on banks after the sector rallied more than 12 percent this year after last year's 21 percent drop
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group lost 1.8 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group shed 1.5 percent. They were still deep in "overbought" territory, despite those losses, with their 14-day relative strength indexes at above 70
Other fallers included Daikin Industries Ltd , down another 2.6 percent after it cut its annual net profit forecast and its projection for operating profit
Japan's corporate earnings results have been disappointing so far. Out of 138 Nikkei companies that have reported, two-thirds of them failed to meet market expectations, Thomson Reuters StarMine data showed. That compares with 34 percent for S&P 500 companies
However, the weak earnings have not deterred the rally in Japanese equities, boosted by a brightening outlook for the United States and an injection of 489 billion euros of three-year loans by the European Central Bank
The Nikkei is up 6.3 percent so far this year after shedding 17.3 percent in 2011
Additional reporting by Antoni Slodkowski; Editing by Paul Tait dominic.lau@thomsonreuters.com+81 3 6441 1917 Reuters Messaging: dominic.lau.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net Keywords: MARKETS JAPAN STOCKS