By Patrick Rial and Satoshi Kawano
July 31 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks advanced, paring a monthly decline, as investors sought safety in companies relatively insulated from a worldwide slowdown.
Kansai Electric Power Co., which hasn't recorded an annual loss in more than a decade, climbed the most since January. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Japan's largest drugmaker, gained after boosting its net income forecast by a quarter. Limiting gains, Nintendo Co. plunged the most in six months after leaving profit forecasts unchanged in spite of 34 percent first-quarter net income growth.
``Investors are shifting their money into industries such as electric-power and pharmaceuticals to guard against slower global growth,'' said Yoshihisa Okamoto, a fund manager at Mizuho Asset Management Co., which oversees about $26 billion in Tokyo.
The Nikkei 225 rose 9.02, or 0.1 percent, to 13,376.81 at the close in Tokyo, after rising and falling as much as 0.8 percent. The broader Topix index climbed 0.63, or 0.1 percent, to 1,303.62, with about three shares rising for every two that fell. The Topix posted a 1.3 percent drop in July, while the Nikkei retreated 0.8 percent.
Japan's government said last week exports fell for the first time in more than four years in June, a sign that overseas demand will no longer prop up the nation's weak consumer spending. Industrial production has fallen for two straight quarters, an occurrence that has coincided with Japan's last three recessions.
Among Topix-listed companies announcing quarterly earnings in the month through yesteday, 272 posted net income declines with 181 reporting gains.
To contact the reporters for this story: Patrick Rial in Tokyo at prial@bloomberg.net; Satoshi Kawano in Tokyo at skawano1@bloomberg.net
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