WSJ:Tokyo Shares Up As Dollar Firm, Elpida Drags On Chip-Related Stocks
By Miyuki Seguchi
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Tokyo stocks rallied on Tuesday as the dollar stayed firm above the Y80 mark to the benefit of major exporters, although Elpida Memory's filing for bankruptcy protection dragged on chip-related stocks such as Advantest.
The Nikkei Stock Average added 88.59 points, or 0.9%, to 9722.52--its highest close since Aug. 2--following Monday's 0.1% decline.
The Topix index of all the Tokyo Stock Exchange First Section issues rose 3.23 points, or 0.4%, to 838.48, with 23 of 33 subindexes closing in positive territory.
Trading volume was robust at about 2.5 billion shares, surpassing the 2 billion mark for the 21st consecutive session.
The Nikkei opened lower and stayed in negative territory throughout the morning session as the dollar pulled back slightly from Monday's highs, hovering near the Y80.00 mark. The greenback did not, however, dip below the key psychological level, and began to climb back higher later in the session, buoying some major exporters.
Fanuc added 2.0% to Y14,600 and Kyocera rose 2.3% to Y7,060.
"Some dip-buying came in as the dollar gained versus the yen without breaching the Y80.00 mark," said Daiwa Securities head of investment strategy and research department Kazuhiro Takahashi.
"The dollar's rise will likely continue if U.S. economic indicators remain firm," he said. "There will be key economic indicators due later in the day such as the Case-Shiller home price index. Expectations remain intact (for a further recovery in U.S. data)."
Elpida Memory fell 24% to the stock's limit-down level at Y254 after the company filed late Monday for bankruptcy protection in the largest corporate failure by a Japanese manufacturer since the end of World War II.
The company said that last-ditch attempts to refinance its debts had failed to materialize.
"Financing has been the key for the firm," said Yoshihiro Okumura, general manager at Chibagin Asset Management. "I doubt institutional investors hold the shares, but there may be some retail investors who did."
The Tokyo bourse said Monday it would delist Elpida's shares on March 28.
The filing dragged down chip-related shares. Advantest lost 1.5% to Y1,120 and wafer maker Shin-Etsu Chemical lost 1.3% to Y4,340.
Among single-name movers, IHI gained 1.4% to Y210 following the company's lifting on Monday of its fiscal year dividend forecast to Y4.00 from Y3.00.
March Nikkei 225 futures closed up 140 points, or 1.5%, at 9760 on the Osaka Securities Exchange.
-By Miyuki Seguchi, Dow Jones Newswires; 81-3-6269-2793
