Tokyo stocks seen lower on US, Sony results eyed

TOKYO, May 16 (Reuters) Tokyo stocks are seen opening lower on Wednesday with high-tech exporters such as Advantest Corp.

down following a decline in the U.S. Nasdaq and a strengthening of the yen.

Investors may become cautious ahead of a series of earnings results later in the day as well as economic growth data and a Bank of Japan policy decision on Thursday, said Yutaka Miura, deputy manager of equity information at Shinko Securities.

Sony Corp. will announce the results for 2006/07 at 3 p.m.

(0600 GMT), and Hitachi Ltd. will announce its results 30 minutes before that.

''Investors are growing cautious as the outlook of the surrounding environment such as the U.S. economy and the currency has become somewhat unclear,'' Miura said.

''After yesterday's negative machinery orders data for the second month in a row, investors are especially paying attention to other economic indicators.'' Japan's core private-sector machinery orders, a key gauge of corporate capital spending, fell 4.5 percent in March from the previous month, well below economists' consensus forecast for a 1.3 percent rise, government data showed on Tuesday.

The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.83 percent to 2,525.29 on Tuesday as disappointing results from some retailers and a report showing U.S. home builder confidence fell in May raised concerns about consumer spending.

The dollar was at 120.18 yen in early Asian trade, down from 120.59 yen it touched in early New York trade on Tuesday.

A stronger yen weighs on exporters as it cuts the value of their overseas sales when translated back into yen.

Nikkei futures pointed to a slight fall in Tokyo stocks.

Contracts expiring in June closed at 17,535 in Chicago on Tuesday, down 15 points from their close in Osaka The Nikkei is likely to move between 17,400 and 17,600 on Wednesday, market participants said.

On Tuesday, the benchmark fell 0.93 percent to finish at 17,512.98, its lowest close since May 2.

STOCKS TO WATCH -- Nippon Steel Corp. T> Nippon Steel's Brazilian affiliate Usiminas will invest 300 billion yen ( TOKYO, May 16 (Reuters) Tokyo stocks are seen opening lower on Wednesday with high-tech exporters such as Advantest Corp.

down following a decline in the U.S. Nasdaq and a strengthening of the yen.

Investors may become cautious ahead of a series of earnings results later in the day as well as economic growth data and a Bank of Japan policy decision on Thursday, said Yutaka Miura, deputy manager of equity information at Shinko Securities.

Sony Corp. will announce the results for 2006/07 at 3 p.m.

(0600 GMT), and Hitachi Ltd. will announce its results 30 minutes before that.

''Investors are growing cautious as the outlook of the surrounding environment such as the U.S. economy and the currency has become somewhat unclear,'' Miura said.

''After yesterday's negative machinery orders data for the second month in a row, investors are especially paying attention to other economic indicators.'' Japan's core private-sector machinery orders, a key gauge of corporate capital spending, fell 4.5 percent in March from the previous month, well below economists' consensus forecast for a 1.3 percent rise, government data showed on Tuesday.

The Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.83 percent to 2,525.29 on Tuesday as disappointing results from some retailers and a report showing U.S. home builder confidence fell in May raised concerns about consumer spending.

The dollar was at 120.18 yen in early Asian trade, down from 120.59 yen it touched in early New York trade on Tuesday.

A stronger yen weighs on exporters as it cuts the value of their overseas sales when translated back into yen.

Nikkei futures pointed to a slight fall in Tokyo stocks.

Contracts expiring in June closed at 17,535 in Chicago on Tuesday, down 15 points from their close in Osaka The Nikkei is likely to move between 17,400 and 17,600 on Wednesday, market participants said.

On Tuesday, the benchmark fell 0.93 percent to finish at 17,512.98, its lowest close since May 2.

STOCKS TO WATCH -- Nippon Steel Corp. T> Nippon Steel's Brazilian affiliate Usiminas will invest 300 billion yen ($2.5 billion)in a new blast furnace to meet rising demand for auto use steel sheet, the Nikkei business daily reported on Wednesday.

-- Honda Motor Co.

The auto maker said on Tuesday it would buy back up to 10 million of its own shares, or up to 38 billion yen ($316 million) worth, from May 16 to June 12. Honda said the buyback represented about 0.55 percent of its shares outstanding.

-- Pentax Corp. T> Pentax Corp.'s board is leaning towards accepting a takeover bid by high-tech glass maker Hoya Corp., according to people close to the situation.

-- TDK Corp. T> The electronics parts maker posted a 59 percent rise in annual profit on Tuesday as demand for cellphones and flat TVs lifted component sales, but said growth would slow this year.

TDK also said it would buy back up to 44 billion yen worth of its own shares, equivalent to 3 percent of those outstanding, from May 16 to June 30.

-- NEC Corp. T> The Japanese electronics maker cut its group profit forecast for the year just ended by more than three-quarters on Tuesday, hit by weaker sales of electronic components and products related to information technology.

-- Astellas Pharma Inc. T> The drugmaker said its recurring profit fell 2.4 percent to 197.8 billion yen in 2006/07 but projected 31 percent growth to 260 billion yen as costs come down and it books strong sales of its transplant drug Prograf.

REUTERS SRS VP0615 .5 billion)in a new blast furnace to meet rising demand for auto use steel sheet, the Nikkei business daily reported on Wednesday.

-- Honda Motor Co.

The auto maker said on Tuesday it would buy back up to 10 million of its own shares, or up to 38 billion yen (6 million) worth, from May 16 to June 12. Honda said the buyback represented about 0.55 percent of its shares outstanding.

-- Pentax Corp. T> Pentax Corp.'s board is leaning towards accepting a takeover bid by high-tech glass maker Hoya Corp., according to people close to the situation.

-- TDK Corp. T> The electronics parts maker posted a 59 percent rise in annual profit on Tuesday as demand for cellphones and flat TVs lifted component sales, but said growth would slow this year.

TDK also said it would buy back up to 44 billion yen worth of its own shares, equivalent to 3 percent of those outstanding, from May 16 to June 30.

-- NEC Corp. T> The Japanese electronics maker cut its group profit forecast for the year just ended by more than three-quarters on Tuesday, hit by weaker sales of electronic components and products related to information technology.

-- Astellas Pharma Inc. T> The drugmaker said its recurring profit fell 2.4 percent to 197.8 billion yen in 2006/07 but projected 31 percent growth to 260 billion yen as costs come down and it books strong sales of its transplant drug Prograf.

REUTERS SRS VP0615