The Nikkei share average edged up today after a sharp sell-off the day before as investors positioned for possible gains ahead, although worries about the deepening debt crisis in Europe muted any optimism.
Scandal-hit Olympus Corp seesawed in volatile trading after the 92-year old company was placed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's supervisory list yesterday, a step towards a possible delisting after it failed to meet a November 14th deadline to report earnings.
Meanwhile German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected the idea that her government might favour a smaller euro zone yesterday as Italy moved closer to a national unity government. Meeting in Hawaii, Asia-Pacific finance ministers agreed to bolster their own economies to protect against fallout from Europe's troubles.
"Europe is going to continue to be a worry, but I do think that stocks are entering a calmer period and will not fall much further," said Yutaka Shiraki, a senior strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.
The Italian Treasury managed to sell one-year bills at yields of less than 7 per cent - a threshold that investors believe would render its debt burden unsustainable, although the country still paid its highest yield in 14 years.
US stock futures rose, suggesting investors were also positioning for gains.
The Nikkei rose 0.2 per cent to 8,514.47, but for the full week it chalked up a loss of 3.3 per cent. The broader Topix index slipped 0.2 per cent to 729.13, showing a weekly loss of 3 per cent.
Volume was moderate with 1.66 billion shares changing hands, down from yesterday's 1.96 billion shares.
Reuters
