TOKYO, June 25 (Reuters) – Japanese banking shares, hit by
worries about the impact of Europe’s woes despite the lenders’
limited exposure to the region’s troubled debt, offer a good
investment opportunity as the sector’s earnings momentum
improves further, analysts said.

Japan’s big banks – Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group,
Mizuho Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial
Group – are also expected to benefit from their
overseas expansion, though they still face sluggish loan demand
in their home market.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average fell on Friday as data showing U.S. manufacturing grew at its slowest pace in 11 months in June added to concerns about weaker growth in Europe and China, but the index was still headed for best weekly gain in four months.

Economic-sensitive sectors were the major decliners, with the mining sector down 2.4 percent and shippers losing 1.6 percent.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average broke above 8,800 for the first time in five weeks on Thursday, as sentiment was buoyed by a softer yen after the U.S. Federal Reserve held back from more aggressive stimulus steps to prop up the economy.

Shrugging off a survey showing China’s vast manufacturing sector slowing for the eighth straight month, the Nikkei .N225 rose 0.8 percent to 8,824.07, driven by exporters, such as Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), up 3.5 percent, and Canon Inc (7751.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), adding 1.4 percent.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average pulled back from a one-month high on Tuesday as initial enthusiasm over a victory for pro-bailout parties in Greece gave way to resurgent concerns over Spain and its banking sector.

The Nikkei slipped 0.3 percent to 8,698.60 after rallying 1.8 percent on Monday to hit its highest closing level since May 22.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average topped 8,700 for the first time in a month on Monday after Greece’s pro-bailout parties won a parliamentary majority at weekend elections, easing fears of a messy euro zone exit.

Investors unwound cautious bets and covered their shorts on economically sensitive sectors such as financials and mining firms while defensive utilities fell, but trading remained light as concerns about the euro zone debt crisis persisted.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average rose on Tuesday and looked set to end a four-session losing run, with investors cutting bearish bets ahead of emergency talks by the G7 industrialized powers on the euro zone crisis.

The Nikkei .N225 advanced 0.6 percent to 8,345.56 by the midday break, helped as Canon Inc (7751.T: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 3.7 percent on plans to buy back up to $640 million worth of its own shares. The camera and printer maker was the top-weighted gainer and the most heavily traded stock on the main board by turnover.

TOKYO, June 4 (Reuters) – Japan’s shares fell sharply in
early trade on Monday, with the Topix index falling to a
near three decades low, as disappointing U.S. jobs data added to
concerns over a slowing Chinese economy and a deepening euro
zone debt crisis.

The broader Topix index lost 2.1 percent to 694.42, a level
not seen since late 1983. Last week, it fell for the ninth
straight week, marking its longest such run since 1975.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average fell on Friday, heading for a ninth straight week of losses to match its longest such run in 20 years, after soft U.S. data added to deepening concerns over Europe’s debt crisis.

Worries over U.S. economic growth and the euro zone’s struggle with debt kept the yen firm against the dollar and the euro, putting more pressure on exporters who already face softer demand for their products if the world economy were to slows.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average shed 1.1 percent on Thursday, closing out its worst monthly fall in two years as investors cut exposure to risky assets on deepening concerns over Spain and its banking sector, with exporters taking a beating.

The Nikkei .N225 fell 90.46 points to 8,542.73, cutting earlier losses amid talk from traders that the Bank of Japan was buying exchange-traded funds in the afternoon to support the market.

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei average ended a four-session winning run on Wednesday, weighed by exporters as the yen firmed on mounting concerns over Spain’s banking system, although Renesas Electronics Corp (6723.T: Quote, Profile, Research) rebounded after a recent slide.

Gains in Softbank Corp (9984.T: Quote, Profile, Research), up 2.7 percent after Deutsche Bank upgrade, and scandal-hit Olympus Corp (7733.T: Quote, Profile, Research) climbed 4 percent, helping to limit the losses on the Nikkei, which closed 0.3 percent lower at 8,633.19.