January 2015

By Thomas Wilson TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese stocks rose to a fresh one-month high on Wednesday as expectations of strong corporate earnings and a weaker yen boosted investor sentiment. The Nikkei benchmark gained 0.2 percent to close at 17,795.73, its highest since Dec. 29, after reversing early losses triggered by profit-taking after disappointing U.S. earnings. Read More

By Thomas Wilson TOKYO, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Japanese stocks rose to a fresh one-month high on Wednesday as expectations of strong corporate earnings and a weaker yen boosted investor sentiment. The Nikkei benchmark gained 0.2 percent to close at 17,795.73, its highest since Dec. 29, after reversing early losses triggered by profit-taking after disappointing Read More

* Sony rises after report it will cut about 1,000 jobs * Komatsu, Hitachi Construction off on Caterpillar earnings By Ayai Tomisawa TOKYO, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average retreated from a one-month high on Wednesday morning as disappointing U.S. earnings and weak U.S. economic data triggered profit-taking, while Sony Corp outperformed after Read More

(Reuters) – Sony Corp plans to cut another 1,000 jobs in its smartphone division, mainly in Europe and China, the Nikkei business daily reported. The cuts are in addition to the 1,000 jobs Sony said it would eliminate in its mobile unit in October, the Nikkei said. Overall, Sony’s mobile division workforce will shrink by Read More

TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) – Japanese share prices rose to one-month highs on Tuesday on relief that Greece’s election outcome did not roil European financial markets as much as initially feared. The Nikkei rose 1.7 percent to 17,768.30 points, its highest close since late December and extending its recovery from a 2-1/2-month low hit on Read More

* Stable European markets post-Greek election boost sentiment * Investors look to positive earning results * Energy-related shares remain under pressure * Hoya jumps to 8-year high after rating upgrade By Hideyuki Sano TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) – Japanese share prices rose to four-week highs on Tuesday, with some market players reporting a large pick-up Read More

(Reuters) – Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> will change the way it pays factory workers, focusing on their performance rather than their seniority, the Nikkei reported on Monday. Toyota’s new arrangement, designed to attract young talent, will apply to about 40,000 employees, or about 60 percent of its workers, aged between 18 and 65, according to Read More

Since then, however, the benchmark stock index has struggled to find upward momentum,weighed by a slightly stronger yen. As of last Friday, the Nikkei was down 2.9 percent on the December 8 high at 17,511. The yen has also wobbled against the dollar: after weakening by nearly 15 percent between mid-October and early December, Read More