Itochu, JFE, Nippon Yusen, Olympus: Japan Stocks Preview

The following companies may have unusual price changes in Japanese trading today. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and share prices are as of the last close. The information in each item was released after markets shut unless stated otherwise.

Hitachi Zosen Corp. (7004) (7004 JT): The manufacturer of environmental equipment said its first-half net income ended Sept. 30 was 1.6 billion yen ($21 million), less than the 3 billion yen it forecast, according to a preliminary earnings statement. The stock gained 0.9 percent to 110 yen.

Itochu Corp. (8001) (8001 JT): The trading company has accepted an offer by Jacques Le Foll to buy Speedy, the French car-repair unit of Kwik-Fit Group Ltd., the daily Le Figaro said, citing Itochu. Itochu slid 1.8 percent to 731 yen.

JFE Holdings Inc. (5411 JT), Japan’s second-largest steelmaker, will likely post a six-month loss of between 20 billion yen ($262 million) and 30 billion yen after the global stock market rout forced it to write down the value of an Indian investment, the Nikkei newspaper reported without saying where it got the information.　JFE declined 1.3 percent to 1,402 yen.

Kansai Electric Power Co. (9503 JT), a power provider in the Kansai region, and Japan’s government may ask the utility’s clients to cut power use by more than 10 percent between Dec. 19 and March 23, the Nikkei reported without saying it got the information.　Shares of the utility were little changed at 1,215 yen.

Nippon Yusen K.K. (9101 JT): The Japanese shipping company said its net loss for the six months ended September was 12 billion yen, more than double its forecast for a loss of 5 billion yen, in a preliminary earnings statement. The company cited lower freight rates and the effects of the strong yen for the wider loss. The stock slid 2.5 percent to 199 yen.

Olympus Corp. (7733) (7733 JT): The maker of endoscopes and cameras said it will form a third-party committee including attorneys and accountants to investigate the company’s past acquisitions. The company received letters from some shareholders asking about the takeovers and is preparing to respond to the queries, it said. The stock closed 6.8 percent lower at 1,231 yen.

Panasonic Corp. (6752) (6752 JT): The electronics maker plans to streamline its semiconductor business, outsourcing more chip production and eliminating 1,000 related jobs in the year ending March 2012, the Nikkei reported without saying where it got the information. The stock rose 3.1 percent to 776 yen.

Tokyo Electric Power Co. (9501 JT): The utility, known as Tepco, will sell all its uranium mining rights for several tens of billion yen, the Yomiuri newspaper reported. Separately, Tokyo Electric plans to sell stock holdings worth 300 billion yen in the year ending March 2012 to raise funds to pay compensation to people affected by the Fukushima disaster, the Nikkei newspaper said. The stock plunged 9.9 percent to 263 yen.

To contact the reporters on this story: Kana Nishizawa in Hong Kong at knishizawa5@bloomberg.net; Norie Kuboyama in Tokyo at nkuboyama@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at ngentle2@bloomberg.net