Tokyo stocks seen moving little, techs may gain

TOKYO, Jan 9 (Reuters) Japanese stocks are seen moving little on Tuesday as shares of technology firms such as Sony Corp. benefit from a rise in similar U.S. firms, but concerns about overheating are likely to keep gains in check.

Shares of brokerage Nikko Cordial Group may be a focus for investors. The securities firm, which faces a million fine and possible stock market delisting over an accounting scandal, may ask Mizuho Financial Group Inc. to increase its stake in it, the Nikkei newspaper said on Saturday.

''We might see a small rise in Tokyo following gains in New York,'' said Yutaka Miura, deputy manager of equity information at Shinko Securities.

But gains were likely to be limited due to nagging concerns that stock prices have advanced too quickly during a rally that saw the Nikkei surge nearly 6 percent last month.

''Today is likely to be a day when investors try to cool the overheating,'' Miura said.

In Chicago, Nikkei futures expiring in March finished at 17,055, 25 points below their close in Osaka The Nikkei is likely to move between 16,950 and 17,200, market participants said. The benchmark fell 1.51 percent on Friday. Japanese markets were closed for a national holiday on Monday.

U.S. stocks advanced on Monday, led by tech shares.

The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.16 percent to close at 2,438.20.

STOCKS TO WATCH -- Nikko Cordial Group The brokerage, which faces a million fine and possible stock market delisting over an accounting scandal, may ask Mizuho Financial Group Inc. to increase its stake in it, the Nikkei newspaper said on Saturday.

-- Aeon Co.

The retailing group reported a 19 percent rise in its nine-month operating profit on Friday, boosted from recent acquisitions, and it kept its full-year forecast for earnings growth of 20 to 26 percent.

-- Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co.

The heavy machinery maker plans to raise about 50 billion yen in capital by issuing new shares, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Tuesday. It will use the funds to expand strategic businesses such as its liquefied natural gas and aircraft engine operations, the paper said.

-- Softbank Corp.

Japan's third-largest mobile phone operator said on Friday it would introduce a pricing plan offering the lowest base fee in the industry, hoping to win users while avoiding scrutiny from Japan's antitrust watchdog.

-- Sharp Corp.

Sharp introduced on Sunday a 108-inch LCD television, which it says is the largest of its kind.

-- Sony Corp.

Sony said on Sunday its U.S. electronics unit is on track to achieve double-digit revenue growth for its fiscal year ending in March 2007, fuelled by solid holiday sales.

-- Nissin Food Products Co.

Momofuku Ando, founder of Nissin and the inventor of instant noodles, a snack that has sold more than 25 billion servings worldwide since its launch, died on Friday at the age of 96, according to the company.

-- Toshiba Corp.

Toshiba expects sales of its HD DVD players and recorders to jump about six times to three million units or more in the year starting April, driven by robust demand in the United States, the electronics conglomerate said on Sunday.

It also remains committed to a flat panel technology called SED and its plan to launch SED TVs in the final quarter of 2007 is unchanged, Toshiba Corporate Senior Vice President Yoshihide Fujii also said in an interview with Reuters.

-- Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.

The consumer electronics maker has developed a rechargeable lithium-ion battery with a capacity nearly 30 percent higher than existing batteries, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday.

-- Nippon Steel Corp. and other steel makers.

Japanese steelmakers are finishing up with negotiations for purchases of iron ore in the next financial year from April, and the prices will likely boost their procurement costs by about 80 billion yen, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Saturday.

-- Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.

Japan's largest drugmaker will ready a war chest of about 1 trillion yen for strategic investments such as mergers and acquisitions, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Saturday.

It may use about 300-500 billion yen of those funds to buy out Abbot Laboratories' stake of their U.S. joint venture, TAP Pharmaceutical Products Inc., the paper said.

Reuters DKS VP0540