Tokyo stocks are see moving higher

TOKYO, May 17: Tokyo stocks are see moving higher on Thursday with high-tech exporters such as Advantest Corp. up following a gain in U.S. stocks and Sony Corp.'s solid forecast for the year, but much will depend on Japan's economic growth data due before the start of trade.

The government's preliminary estimate of GDP for January-March is expected to show a 0.7 percent rise from the previous quarter in real price-adjusted terms, or an annualised 2.7 percent, according to the median forecast of 30 economists polled by Reuters.

''Unless the GDP data comes in negative, Tokyo stocks are likely to gain led by stocks in companies with global operations following the U.S. market and Sony's results,'' said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equity marketing at Nikko Cordial Securities.

Nikkei futures pointed to a rise in Tokyo stocks. Contracts expiring in June closed at 17,675 in Chicago on Wednesday, up 115 points from their close in Osaka The Nikkei is likely to move between 17,500 and 17,750 on Thursday, market participants said.

The benchmark ended the previous session up 0.09 percent at 17,529.00.

After Wednesday's market close, Sony posted a wider quarterly loss due to deficits in its PlayStation game unit, but forecast a sharp rise in annual profit on strong sales of flat-screen TVs and digital cameras.

U.S. stocks jumped on Wednesday on expectations about deals including news about Citigroup The Dow Jones industrial average rose 0.77 percent to close at 13,487.53, a new record.

Japanese companies scheduled to report results on Thursday include Sumitomo Realty&Development Co. Ltd. and Rakuten Inc.

STOCKS TO WATCH -- Sony Corp. T> Sony posted a wider quarterly loss due to deficits in its PlayStation game unit, but forecast a sharp rise in annual profit on strong sales of flat-screen TVs and digital cameras.

-- Pentax Corp. Hoya Corp. T> Pentax President Takashi Watanuki has told his counterpart at Hoya that it is prepared to accept Hoya's tender offer with conditions, a person familiar with the matter said.

-- Bull-Dog Sauce Co. Ltd. T> U.S. hedge fund Steel Partners said on Wednesday it intends to start a tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of Bull-Dog Sauce at 1,584 yen per share.

-- Aeon Co. Ltd. T> Aeon, Japan's biggest retail group, said on Wednesday it was applying for a banking licence.

-- Omron Corp. OS> The maker of electric and medical machinery said on Wednesday it would spend up to 100 million yen (7,800) buy back as many as 3 million of its shares, or 1.2 percent of its total outstanding stock.

-- Mabuchi Motor Co. Ltd. T> The manufacturer of small motors said on Wednesday it will spend 10 billion yen to buy 1.5 million shares, or 3.2 percent of its total outstanding stock, from the company's founding family between May 17 and June 29.

REUTERS>