Nikkei turns positive, Oki Electric surges

TOKYO, Mar 29 (Reuters) The Nikkei share average rose 0.31 percent to recoup earlier losses as Oki Electric Industry Co jumped on a news report about restructuring and investors bought shipping and other recently battered stocks.

Rises in Asian stocks such as Shanghai stock index encouraged investors to pick up Japanese stocks.

But shares of Credit Saison Co. Ltd. tumbled after the consumer credit firm said on Wednesday it would cut its lending rates due to industry-wide regulations that will lower the maximum interest rate on consumer loans.

The Tokyo market has been down for the past two days as Monday was the last day for investors to buy stocks and be entitled to receive dividends for the fiscal year ending this month, and many stocks have lost their dividend allure.

But investors seemed to be back in the market and looking for bargains, said Zenshiro Mizuno, senior managing director at Marusan Securities Co Ltd.

''Selling in such high-dividend stocks as utilities, pharmaceuticals and steel has subsided,'' he said.

The Nikkei rose 53.13 points to 17,307.86 as of 0421 GMT, while the broader TOPIX index was up 0.21 percent at 1,714.70.

Oki Electric surged 9 percent to 219 yen after the Nikkei business daily said the loss-making telecom equipment maker would regroup or close 10 billion yen of its business and was aiming for an operating profit of 5 to 10 billion yen in the business year ending March 2008.

Sanyo Electric Co Ltd jumped 5.4 percent to 197 yen as the company said on Wednesday that its president would step down next month amid an earnings slump.

In the shipping sector, Nippon Yusen KK rose 1.6 percent to 964 yen, snapping its two-day losing streak.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. climbed 0.9 percent to 1,331 yen.

The dollar edged up on Thursday, extending a rebound against the yen as market players viewed comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke as suggesting the central bank is not ready to cut interest rates just yet.

Some exporters rose, with TDK Corp. up 1.8 percent at 10,240 yen and Kyocera Corp. gaining 0.6 percent to 11,090 yen.

REUTERS CS GC1115