* Exporters lead gains, steelmakers climb on upgrades
* Gains seen tame before earnings by firms such as Intel
By Aiko Hayashi
TOKYO, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average rose 0.4
percent on Tuesday, helped higher by exporters such as Advantest
Corp <6857.T> after the S&P 500 managed a sixth consecutive day
of gains, while steelmakers climbed on a brokerage ratings hike.
Pioneer Corp <6773.T> shot up 7.3 percent after Citigroup
Global Markets Japan upgraded it to "hold" from "sell", citing
the share price's fall of 30 percent from a recent high as well
as progress in restructuring.
But gains were limited in the overall market as investors
waited to see corporate earnings reports in the United States and
Japan, market players said. Major companies including Intel Corp
<INTC.O> are due to report earnings later in the day. []
[]
"Advances are due to a solid performance in overseas stock
markets during our long weekend and a halt in the yen's advance
against the dollar," said Mitsuo Shimizu, deputy general manager
at Cosmo Securities.
"When Intel reports earnings, its outlook will likely be
particularly in focus. If chip makers were to say they expect
demand to increase, that would mean the economy is on the mend."
In light trade, the Nikkei <> added 38.76 points by
midsession to 10,055.15, after climbing 1.9 percent on Friday to
its highest finish in a week.
The broader Topix <> gained 0.4 percent to 901.10.
Japanese markets were closed on Monday for a national
holiday.
The yen was steady around 89.85 yen to the dollar <JPY=>.
Many Japanese exporters have set their exchange rate assumptions
for the dollar at around 90-95 yen for the financial year to
March. []
The S&P 500 managed a sixth consecutive day of gains on
Monday to end at its closing high for the year as energy shares
rose along with the price of oil. []
"On the whole, investors are being optimistic about the
upcoming corporate earnings season," said Kazuhiro Takahashi,
general manager at Daiwa Securities SMBC.
"The market is rather at a place where stock prices could
peak if companies report earnings that fall short of expectations
or because positive earnings have been already factored in."
STEEL MAKERS STRONG
Advantest, a chip-tester maker, climbed 2.3 percent to 2,430
yen and electronics components maker TDK Corp <6762.T> added 2.5
percent to 5,290 yen. Honda Motor Co <7267.T> advanced 2 percent
to 2,805 yen.
Tokyo Electron <8035.T> rose 1.1 percent to 5,770 yen after
the company said quarterly orders for its tools to make
semiconductors and flat panel displays recovered to near
year-earlier levels as logic and memory-chip makers start
investing. []
JFE Holdings <5411.T> and other steel shares climbed after
Goldman Sachs hiked its ratings on the companies as well as
upgraded its coverage views on the steel sector in Asia to
"attractive" from "neutral", saying demand for steel is likely to
rise in 2010.
JFE Holdings jumped 6.1 percent to 3,310 yen, while Nippon
Steel <5401.T> gained 6.2 percent to 358 yen and Kobe Steel
<5406.T> added 4.9 percent to 171 yen.
The iron and steel subindex <.ISTEL.T> rose 4.9 percent to
become the biggest gainer among the subindexes.
Shares of Pioneer surged to 235 yen.
Among other notable stocks, Japan Airport Terminal Co
<9706.T> soared 10.4 percent to 1,186 yen after Transport
Minister Seiji Maehara reportedly indicated that he wanted to
turn Tokyo's mostly domestic Haneda airport into a hub for
international flights.
Japan Airport Terminal owns the Haneda airport terminal
building.
Some 856 million shares changed hands on the Tokyo exchange's
first section, below last week's morning average of 980 million.
Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones 961 to 570.
(Editing by Michael Watson)
