Most Japanese Stocks Gain; Shipping Stocks Climb on Higher Fees

By Masaki Kondo

Jan. 14 (Bloomberg) -- Most Japanese stocks climbed as shippers gained on increases in fees for transporting commodities and higher oil prices lifted energy producers.

Nippon Yusen K.K. and Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., the nation’s biggest shipping lines, jumped more than 3 percent. Inpex Corp., Japan’s largest oil explorer, rose 5 percent after crude oil gained for the first time in six days. Fujitsu Ltd. jumped 6.9 percent on a newspaper report it will likely sell its hard-disk business to Toshiba Corp. Mitsubishi Estate Co. lost 2.4 percent, extending yesterday’s 9.2 percent decline, on concern the industry might have more failures after two real-estate companies filed for bankruptcy on Jan. 9.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 34.71, or 0.4 percent, to 8,448.62. The broader Topix index rose 8.42, or 1 percent, to 822.54 as of 10:11 a.m. in Tokyo.

Nippon Yusen rose 3.4 percent to 550 yen, while Mitsui O.S.K. added 4 percent to 606 yen. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., the third biggest, advanced 4.3 percent to 413 yen. Shipping lines were the second-biggest winners among 33 industry groups on the Topix after mining companies.

The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of commodity-shipping costs, climbed for a sixth day, rising 2.5 percent to the highest level since Oct. 29.

Inpex rose 5 percent to 676,000 yen, while smaller rival Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. gained 2.2 percent to 4,220 yen. Crude oil for February delivery broke a five-day losing streak yesterday with a 0.5 percent gain in New York as Saudi Arabia Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said his country will make deeper supply cuts than previously announced.

Fujitsu, Toshiba

Fujitsu, the world’s sixth-largest maker of hard-disk drives, surged 6.9 percent to 421 yen, and Toshiba rose 1.8 percent to 392 yen. Fujitsu is in the final stage of talks to sell its hard- disk business to Toshiba for as much as 40 billion yen ($448 million), the Nikkei newspaper reported today.

Mitsubishi Estate, Japan’s second-biggest developer, sank 2.4 percent to 1,260 yen, and market leader Mitsui Fudosan Co. lost 2.7 percent to 1,260 yen. Sumitomo Realty & Development Co., the third largest, retreated 1.2 percent to 1,167 yen. Real- estate companies as a group were the biggest losers among the Topix groups.

Real-estate advisory company Creed Corp. and condominium builder Toshin Housing Co. separately filed for bankruptcy last week. Tokyo Shoko Research Ltd. yesterday said bankruptcies among listed companies rose to the highest level in 2008 since World War II. Three-quarters of those failures were real estate-related, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Nikkei futures expiring in March edged up 0.6 percent to 8,420 in Osaka and gained 0.5 percent to 8,415 in Singapore.

To contact the reporter for this story: Masaki Kondo in Tokyo at mkondo3@bloomberg.net.