Tokyo stocks rise on Wall Street rally, softer yen; China virus fears still weigh

TOKYO, Feb 5 (Reuters) - Japanese shares rose on Wednesday
as a Wall Street rally and weaker yen boosted investor
sentiment, although worries over the fast-spreading coronavirus
outbreak capped gains.
The benchmark Nikkei average .N225 rose 1% to 23,319.56,
while the broader Topix .TOPX also added 1% to 1,701.83.
All but one of the 33 sector subindexes on the Tokyo Stock
Exchange were in positive territory, led by fish and forest
.IFISH.T , insurance .IINSU.T and mining .IMING.T .
On Wall Street, the Nasdaq .IXIC jumped 2.1% to a record
on Tuesday, while the S&P 500 .SPX and the Dow .DJI advanced
1.7% each as investors took heart from China's efforts to
minimise the economic impact from the coronavirus epidemic. .N
The safe-haven yen nursed losses versus the dollar and was
last at 109.45 yen JPY=EBS , close to a 1-1/2-week low hit
overnight, providing a tailwind for Japanese exporters. A weaker
yen boosts corporate profits when they are repatriated.
Sharp Corp 6753.T climbed 1.2% after the electronics
company reported a 38.5% increase in third-quarter operating
profit due to gains at its smart appliance division and
cost-reduction efforts. Panasonic Corp 6752.T continued its advance, with the
shares ending the morning session up 4.4%, two days after the
electronics conglomerate said its automotive battery venture
with Tesla Inc TSLA.O was in the black for the first time.

Sony Corp 6758.T shed 0.5% in choppy trade after the
company warned of an impact from the Wuhan coronavirus on its
global supply chain, although the electronics company raised its
annual profit outlook due to strong sales of smartphone image
sensors. Subaru Corp 7270.T declined 0.4% after the automaker
maintained its profit forecast for the year through March and
said the firm is checking with China-based suppliers for
potential disruptions to parts deliveries from the coronavirus
outbreak. Many traders doubted the recent rally is sustainable, noting
the lingering concerns about the virus outbreak and its broader
economic and market impact.
The death toll from the flu-like virus that originated in
China's central city of Wuhan has passed 490, as two U.S.
airlines suspended flights to Hong Kong following the first
fatality there and 10 cases were confirmed on a quarantined
Japanese cruise ship. Elsewhere, Mercari Inc 4385.T jumped 3.9% after the
e-commerce start-up announced the company and its subsidiary
Merpay agreed to form a business partnership with NTT Docomo to
enhance payment services and point programs. NTT Docomo Inc
9437.T added 2.3%.