TOKYO: Japanese stocks staged a mild bounce early Tuesday — despite expectations by some analysts for an extended drop as the Greek fiscal crisis comes to a head — with a strong rebound in the euro helping some shares. The Nikkei Average NIK, +0.33% was 0.3% higher about 10 minutes into the session, after suffering a 2.9% loss the day before. The Topix I0000, +0.09% rose 0.2%, and while the dollar USDJPY, -0.18% was a little weaker against the yen (buying ¥122.59), the euro EURJPY, -0.61% recovered sharply against the Japanese currency, rising to ¥137.51 from ¥134.62 a day earlier. The forex action helped lift some exporters (Mazda Motor Corp. 7261, +0.82% MZDAF, -2.98% up 0.4%, Kyocera Corp. 6971, +0.81% KYOCF, -1.15% up 1.1%), but many of the major gainers were in defensive sectors, including telecoms and retailers, seen as relatively isolated from the Greek fallout. Among these, NTT DoCoMo Inc. 9437, +1.35% DCM, -0.99% advanced 1.8% and KDDI Corp. 9433, +2.37% KDDIF, +0.41% recovered 1.7%, while in the retail space, convenience-store operators FamilyMart Co. 8028, +2.91% FYRTF, +1.50% and Lawson Inc. 2651, +2.44% improved by 1.5% apiece, and e-commerce major Rakuten Inc. 4755, +2.14% RKUNF, -3.89% added 2%. On the downside, financials sunk further amid concerns about Europe, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. 8306, -1.58% MTU, -3.22% losing 1.1% and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. 8411, -0.98% MFG, -3.37% falling 1.5%.
