Japan shares pause after Thursday's rally; SoftBank Group shines

TOKYO, Feb 7 (Reuters) - Japanese shares held steady on
Friday, after having logged their biggest daily gain in more
than a year in the previous session, with SoftBank Group soaring
on news that U.S. activist investor Elliott Management has built
a stake in the company.
The benchmark Nikkei average .N225 eased 0.1% to 23,855.37
by the midday break. It jumped 2.4% on Thursday, its most in 13
months, as China pledged tariff cuts on some U.S. imports,
providing some relief to global financial markets jolted by a
rapidly spreading coronavirus outbreak.
For the week, the index was still up 2.8% and poised for its
best week in eight.
Index-heavy SoftBank Group 9984.T surged 6.3% after media
reports that Elliott Management has amassed a nearly $3 billion
stake in the Japanese conglomerate and is pushing for changes in
its governance and transparency. The broader Topix .TOPX slipped 0.2% to 1,733.32,
following a 2.1% leap on Thursday.
All but four of the 33 sector subindexes on the Tokyo Stock
Exchange were in negative territory, with paper and pulp
.IPAPR.T , textiles .ITXTL.T and air transport .IAIRL.T
leading the losses.
With the earnings season in full swing in Japan, Olympus
Corp 7733.T shot up 11.9% to a record high after the medical
equipment maker posted record operating profit for the
April-December period and raised its full-year profit guidance.
Although financial markets have found some comfort from
China's stimulus measures and move to cut import tariffs on some
U.S. goods, investors remain concerned about the coronavirus
outbreak and its broader impact on individual companies and the
economy.
On Friday, China's Hubei province, where Wuhan is located,
reported 69 new deaths, taking the total in the mainland to over
600. It also reported nearly 2,500 new cases, taking the total
to over 30,000, according to state television. Takara Bio Inc 4974.T jumped 10.9% after the Nikkei
newspaper reported the company is set to produce 50 times more
of a coronavirus testing reagent at its plant in Dalian in
response to an urgent request from the Chinese city.