TOKYO, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei average is expected to move narrowly on Thursday after Wall Street stocks ended flat, but hover near a five-month high hit this week as a weakening in the yen against the dollar could support exporters' shares.
Nikkei futures traded in Chicago closed at 9,835, almost unchanged from the Osaka close. The benchmark Nikkei ended slightly higher on Wednesday as the softening yen prompted investors to hunt for bargains in carmakers and other exporters.
"It looks like the Nikkei is getting a bit overheated, but ample liquidity continues to exist globally," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equity marketing at Nikko Cordial Securities.
"Still, the market lacks convincing trading factors today, and it will likely be range-bound, with eyes mostly on currency moves and other Asian markets."
The Nikkei is likely to move between 9,700 and 9,900, market players said. It ended Wednesday up 0.2 percent at 9,811.66.
In early Asia trade the dollar fetched 83.15 yen, not far off a six-week high of 83.60 yen struck on Tuesday.
The market is watching if the Nikkei can rebound towards its five-month intraday high of 9,908.30 hit on Tuesday, though solid resistance likely waits at its 200-day moving average, now 9,920, which has held it down since May.
A decisive break above that level could pave the way for it to rise to the closely watched 10,000 mark, traders said, and the next target is then expected to be around its June high of 10,251.90.
General Motors Co's landmark initial public offering was priced at the high end of the indicative range after Wall Street closed as investors clamoured for stock in the iconic automaker. But Nishi said the impact will likely be limited in Tokyo as the news was largely within expectations. ----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2307 GMT ------------
LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1178.59 0.02% 0.250 USD/JPY 83.15 -0.05% -0.040 10-YR US TSY YLD 2.8821 -- 0.000 SPOT GOLD 1336.99 0.10% 1.290 US CRUDE 80.59 0.19% 0.150 DOW JONES 11007.88 -0.14% -15.62 ------------------------------------------------------------- > Wall St little changed as banks offset retail stocks > Euro gains vs dollar on Ireland hopes, weak US data > Bonds fall as QE2 criticism overshadows data > Gold falls for 4th day on China inflation talk > Oil drops to 4-week low on China rate worries
STOCKS TO WATCH
-- MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings Inc
MS&AD will sell off about 300 billion yen ($3.61 billion) in shareholdings between fiscal 2011 and 2013, the Nikkei business daily reported.
The move is aimed at reducing risky assets ahead of a tougher solvency margin ratio standard to be introduced in fiscal 2011, the Nikkei reported.
-- Sapporo Holdings Ltd
Sapporo will acquire a 5 percent stake in dairy firm Kyodo Milk Industry Co to strengthen its food and beverage operations, the Nikkei reported.
-- Toyota Motor Corp
Toyota said on Wednesday it has set up a wholly owned research and development centre in Changshu, China, which will begin partial operations next spring.
-- Clarion Co Ltd
Clarion, a major maker of car stereos and navigators, will likely upgrade its annual earnings outlook to reflect strong overseas sales unless domestic demand undershoots its expectations by the year-end, its president said on Wednesday.
-- Tokyo Electric Power Co
Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) said it plans to restart the 1,100-megawatt No.5 reactor at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant at 2 p.m. (0500 GMT) on Thursday. The plant was damaged by an earthquake in July 2007. ($1=83.21 Yen) (Reporting by Aiko Hayashi; Editing by Michael Watson)