Nikkei little changed but Sony jumps on earnings

Tokyo, Jul 28: The Nikkei average was little changed on Friday as shares of Sony Corp. jumped after the electronics firm surprised the market with strong earnings, while TDK Corp. and other recent gainers declined.

Sony rose 4.6 percent to 5,250 yen, becoming the biggest positive contributor to the Nikkei, after it reported on Thursday a better-than-expected quarterly operating profit, propelled by robust sales of flat TVs and gains from its mobile phone joint venture with Ericsson ''Sony's earnings were better than expected,'' said Toshihiko Matsuno, assistant general manager at SMBC Friend Securities.

Recent gains have made technology stocks less attractive, though, Matsuno said.

''Overall I don't think technology stocks are that attractive ... Electronic device firms have performed really well, so it wouldn't be surprising to see their share prices decline at any time.'' The Nikkei was down 0.14 percent at 15,158.04 as of 0056 GMT, having swung between gains and losses for most of the session.

The broader TOPIX index was up 0.04 percent at 1,542.47.

Electronic components maker TDK Corp. fell 1.4 percent to 8,680 yen after gaining some 3 percent in the previous session.

Chip-gear maker Advantest Corp. dropped 1.2 percent, also trimming gains from the previous session.

Shares of Canon Inc. rose 1.1 percent to 5,450 yen after it posted stronger-than-expected profit gains for the latest quarter on Thursday, helped by strong demand for digital cameras.

REUTERS