Japan stocks rise as Honda, Sony get earnings lift

Japanese stocks rose on Friday, with Honda Motor Co and Sony Corp jumping after posting strong earnings. Canon Inc also rose. It posted a decline in quarterly profit but kept its full-year outlook on the back of strong demand for its digital cameras. Still, strong gains by these blue chip were slow to translate into a big advance in the overall market as investors remained cautious ahead of more earnings to come, with the Nikkei average <.n225> edging up 0.8 percent. "Sony results are a surprise. But there is a concern about a slowdown in U.S. consumer spending. So, we cannot expect sustained growth in its share price," said Takahiko Murai, general manager of equities at Nozomi Securities. "Overall, there's a chance exporters could cut their full-year outlook if the situation in the United States turns worse than expected." As of 0102 GMT, the benchmark Nikkei was up 125.61 points at 16,409.78. The broader TOPIX index <.topx> was up 1 percent at 1,563.33. Honda jumped 6.2 percent to 3,940 yen after Japan's second-biggest automaker posted a forecast-beating 63 percent jump in quarterly earnings as strong sales of its new CR-V crossover made up for higher raw materials costs, and it raised its full-year net profit forecast on a lower tax rate. [ID:nSP249666] Sony rose 6.9 percent to 5,460 yen after it reported a swing to a quarterly operating profit on Thursday on strong sales of personal computers and digital cameras, raising its full-year forecast by 2 percent. Canon climbed 2.2 percent to 5,700 yen. Asahi Breweries Ltd gained 4.5 percent to 1,784 yen after it said on Thursday it will launch a $477 million bid to buy out minority shareholders in Asahi Soft Drinks as it looks to reduce its reliance on Japan's sluggish beer market. [ID:nT179415] Asahi Breweries said it would offer 2,120 yen per Asahi Soft Drinks share, a 14 percent premium to Thursday's closing price of 1,860 yen. Asahi Soft Drinks Co Ltd jumped 13.4 percent to 2,110 yen.