Sept. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks rose on speculation chipmakers’ earnings prospects are improving and after higher domestic sales and a strengthening dollar boosted automakers.
Toshiba Corp., Japan’s biggest maker of semiconductors, climbed 2.7 percent and was the country’s most-actively traded stock by value after the Nikkei newspaper said the chip unit will book an operating profit. Nikon Corp., the nation’s No. 1 manufacturer of steppers used to make chips, rose 4.3 percent. Honda Motor Co., which gets almost half its sales in North America, added 1.2 percent after the dollar climbed and a report showed Japanese car sales rose for the first time in 13 months.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.4 percent to close at 10,530.06 in Tokyo after flipping between gains and losses seven times. The broader Topix index advanced 0.3 percent to 968.77, with four stocks gaining for every three that fell. The number of shares traded in Tokyo was the lowest since Feb. 16.
“Investors would like to wait and see whether demand for finished products will grow,” leading to this directionless market, said Yoji Takeda, who manages the equivalent of $1.1 billion at RBC Investment (Asia) Ltd. in Hong Kong. “I don’t expect demand to expand vigorously but think it will recover very slowly.”
The Nikkei 225, which has risen and fallen on alternate days since Aug. 14, has rallied 49 percent from its lowest close in more than a quarter century on March 10. That lifted the average price of stocks on the index to 42.7 times estimated net income, higher than 17.1 times for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in the U.S., data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Return to Profit
Toshiba’s semiconductor business will likely book an operating profit of “a few billion yen” in the three months to September, and orders from automakers are rebounding at NEC Electronics Corp., the Nikkei reported today. Separately, global semiconductor sales rose 5.3 percent from the previous month to $18.2 billion, the Semiconductor Industry Association said in a statement yesterday.
Toshiba added 2.7 percent to 491 yen. Sumco Corp., the world’s No. 2 maker of silicon wafers, soared 10 percent. NEC Electronics, Japan’s No. 4 chipmaker, surged 11 percent.
Honda, the nation’s No. 2 automaker, advanced 1.2 percent to 2,970 yen, and bigger rival Toyota Motor Corp. increased 0.8 percent to 4,020 yen. Domestic car sales rose 2.3 percent last month, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said today. The two carmakers and Toshiba were the three biggest contributors to the Topix’s gains today.
“The business climate will continue to improve and there’s no reason for investors to sell,” said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, a strategist at Tokyo-based SMBC Friend Securities Co. “There are companies that will raise their full-year earnings forecasts when they report first-half results.”
China Concern, Commodities
Automakers were also buoyed by the stronger dollar, as it boosts the value of overseas sales at Japanese companies when converted into their home currency. The dollar appreciated against the yen to as much as 93.20 today from 92.82 at the close of Tokyo stock trading yesterday.
Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the nation’s No. 3 shipping line, decreased 1.5 percent, and bigger rival Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. declined 2 percent. Shipping companies collectively had the steepest drop among the Topix’s 33 industry groups.
“Investors are concerned shipping demand will slow globally, particularly in China,” said Masatsugu Okeya, a fund manager at Chiba-Gin Asset Management Co. Low shipping rates “are little help in getting people excited about their earnings outlooks.”
China’s Shanghai Composite Index slumped the most since June 2008 yesterday, sparking declines in commodities and U.S. equities. The gauge lost 23 percent from its 15-month high on Aug. 4, crossing the 20 percent threshold that signals the beginning of a bear market.
The Baltic Dry Index, a gauge of rates to carry dry bulk commodities such as iron ore, coal and grain, has tumbled 79 percent from its record high in May 2008.
Toshiba Corp., Japan’s biggest maker of semiconductors, climbed 2.7 percent and was the country’s most-actively traded stock by value after the Nikkei newspaper said the chip unit will book an operating profit. Nikon Corp., the nation’s No. 1 manufacturer of steppers used to make chips, rose 4.3 percent. Honda Motor Co., which gets almost half its sales in North America, added 1.2 percent after the dollar climbed and a report showed Japanese car sales rose for the first time in 13 months.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.4 percent to close at 10,530.06 in Tokyo after flipping between gains and losses seven times. The broader Topix index advanced 0.3 percent to 968.77, with four stocks gaining for every three that fell. The number of shares traded in Tokyo was the lowest since Feb. 16.
“Investors would like to wait and see whether demand for finished products will grow,” leading to this directionless market, said Yoji Takeda, who manages the equivalent of $1.1 billion at RBC Investment (Asia) Ltd. in Hong Kong. “I don’t expect demand to expand vigorously but think it will recover very slowly.”
The Nikkei 225, which has risen and fallen on alternate days since Aug. 14, has rallied 49 percent from its lowest close in more than a quarter century on March 10. That lifted the average price of stocks on the index to 42.7 times estimated net income, higher than 17.1 times for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in the U.S., data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Return to Profit
Toshiba’s semiconductor business will likely book an operating profit of “a few billion yen” in the three months to September, and orders from automakers are rebounding at NEC Electronics Corp., the Nikkei reported today. Separately, global semiconductor sales rose 5.3 percent from the previous month to $18.2 billion, the Semiconductor Industry Association said in a statement yesterday.
Toshiba added 2.7 percent to 491 yen. Sumco Corp., the world’s No. 2 maker of silicon wafers, soared 10 percent. NEC Electronics, Japan’s No. 4 chipmaker, surged 11 percent.
Honda, the nation’s No. 2 automaker, advanced 1.2 percent to 2,970 yen, and bigger rival Toyota Motor Corp. increased 0.8 percent to 4,020 yen. Domestic car sales rose 2.3 percent last month, the Japan Automobile Dealers Association said today. The two carmakers and Toshiba were the three biggest contributors to the Topix’s gains today.
“The business climate will continue to improve and there’s no reason for investors to sell,” said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, a strategist at Tokyo-based SMBC Friend Securities Co. “There are companies that will raise their full-year earnings forecasts when they report first-half results.”
China Concern, Commodities
Automakers were also buoyed by the stronger dollar, as it boosts the value of overseas sales at Japanese companies when converted into their home currency. The dollar appreciated against the yen to as much as 93.20 today from 92.82 at the close of Tokyo stock trading yesterday.
Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the nation’s No. 3 shipping line, decreased 1.5 percent, and bigger rival Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. declined 2 percent. Shipping companies collectively had the steepest drop among the Topix’s 33 industry groups.
“Investors are concerned shipping demand will slow globally, particularly in China,” said Masatsugu Okeya, a fund manager at Chiba-Gin Asset Management Co. Low shipping rates “are little help in getting people excited about their earnings outlooks.”
China’s Shanghai Composite Index slumped the most since June 2008 yesterday, sparking declines in commodities and U.S. equities. The gauge lost 23 percent from its 15-month high on Aug. 4, crossing the 20 percent threshold that signals the beginning of a bear market.
The Baltic Dry Index, a gauge of rates to carry dry bulk commodities such as iron ore, coal and grain, has tumbled 79 percent from its record high in May 2008.
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