Japanese stocks rose, led by automakers after the yen weakened to a nine-day low, and a newspaper report the government will support increased use of rechargeable cells lifted battery-related shares. Toyota, the biggest carmaker globally, jumped 3.5 percent. Sanyo Electric Co., the world’s largest maker of rechargeable batteries, leapt 5.2 percent. Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co. climbed 10 percent on a Nikkei newspaper report it will invest in equipment used to make material for battery cathodes. Japan Tobacco Inc., the world’s No. 3 cigarette maker, sank 5.2 percent after Motohisa Furukawa, vice chairman of the opposition party’s tax study group, was cited as saying in a Reuters report the cigarette tax should be raised. “Investors who have been on the sidelines are looking for bargains,” said Naoki Fujiwara, chief fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management Co., which oversees the equivalent of $6.1 billion in Tokyo. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 40.81, or 0.4 percent, to 9,479.58 as of 2:13 p.m., reversing from a 0.9 percent drop. The broader Topix index rose 4.18, or 0.5 percent, to 897.03, with more than three stocks rising for every two that retreated. The Topix rose 3.9 percent on the year through yesterday, driving down its estimated dividend yield to 1.81 percent, the lowest level since September, according to Bloomberg data. The spread between that yield and the return on 10-year Japanese government bonds has narrowed by 80 percent from a record 168.7 basis points on Jan. 26. Rechargeable Batteries Toyota added 3.5 percent to 3,830 yen, and closest rival Honda Motor Co. rose 3.1 percent to 2,805 yen. The yen depreciated to 96.58 today, the weakest level since May 19, from 95.60 at the 9 a.m. open of stock trading, lifting earnings prospects for automakers. Sanyo Electric surged 5.2 percent to 241 yen. The government is considering standardization of safety guidelines in an effort to increase the use of rechargeable cells in homes, the Nikkei newspaper said. Sumitomo Osaka Cement climbed 10 percent to 222 yen after a separate Nikkei report said it will make lithium-iron phosphate for battery cathodes. Japan Tobacco tumbled 5.2 percent to 272,000 yen, weighing the most on the Topix. Furukawa, a member of the opposition Democratic Party of Japan, said in an interview that cigarette taxes should be raised to curb smoking, Reuters reported yesterday. Department store operator Uny Co. slumped 3 percent to 754 yen, and Yamada Denki Co., Japan’s top electronics retailer, slid 1.6 percent to 5,570 yen. The nation’s retail sales slid for an eighth month in April with a 2.9 percent decline from a year earlier, the Trade Ministry said today. Nikkei futures expiring in June inched up 0.5 percent to 9,480 in Osaka and added 0.7 percent to 9,485 in Singapore.

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