TOKYO, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks are seen rising on 
Thursday after surprisingly good U.S. retail data soothed 
recession fears, with a weaker yen helping Canon Inc <7751.T> and 
other exporters and little impact seen from Japanese GDP data. 
    One stock to watch will be Honda Motor Co <7267.T>, with the 
automaker likely posting no revenue growth before late 2009 as it 
waits for two big factories to come on line to meet demand, its 
chief financial officer said on Wednesday. [ID:nT280328] 
U.S. government data showing higher retail sales in January 
bucked expectations for a decline and took investors by surprise 
since it followed an anaemic January jobs report [ID:nN13334844]. 
    Japanese market players said the data, important because 
consumer spending fuels 70 percent of U.S. economic activity, 
would inevitably boost sentiment. 
    "This was a surprise, though you can't say it will prove that 
everything's OK with the U.S. economy," said Ryuta Otsuka, a 
general manager at Toyo Securities. 
    Japan's preliminary October-January GDP data is due out just 
before the market opens but is unlikely to become a factor unless 
it is worse than expected. The forecast is unchanged at 0.4 
percent quarterly growth, but the risk and outlook is to the 
downside. 
    The benchmark Nikkei average <.N225> is seen ranging from 
13,100-13,350. It closed at 13,068.30 on Wednesday. 
    In a sign of how the market may move, Nikkei futures traded 
in Chicago <2NKc1> closed at 13,300, against 13,100 in Osaka. 
<JNIc1>. 
 ----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2258 GMT ------------ 
                    INSTRUMENT   LAST       PCT CHG   NET CHG 
S&P 500             <.SPX>       1367.21      1.36%    18.350 
USD/JPY             <JPY=>       108.18      -0.12%    -0.130 
10-YR US TSY YLD    <US10YT=RR>  3.7359          --     0.000 
SPOT GOLD           <XAU=>       904.8       -0.14%    -1.300 
US CRUDE            <CLc1>       93.27        0.00%     0.490 
DOW JONES           <.DJI>       12552.24     1.45%    178.83 
------------------------------------------------------------- 
> Market rises as retail sales soothe economy fears         [.N] 
> Dollar rallies to 1-mo high vs yen on retail sales      [USD/] 
> TREASURIES-Bonds pushed mostly lower in late stock surge [US/] 
> Platinum hits record on supply; futures at $2,000       [GOL/] 
> Oil rises above $93, Venezuela cuts off Exxon            [O/R] 
STOCKS TO WATCH 
    -- Honda Motor Co <7267.T>  
    The automaker will likely post no revenue growth before late 
2009 as it waits for two big factories to come on line to meet 
demand, its chief financial officer said on Wednesday. 
[ID:nT280328] 
    -- Ricoh Co <7752.T> 
    Ricoh will build a factory in Thailand to double its global 
output of copiers and printers and reduce its reliance on China, 
the Nikkei business reported on Thursday. 
    The new assembly plant will be built in the southeastern 
province of Rayong at a total cost of about 10 billion yen 
($92.37 million), the newspaper said. 
    -- Sharp Corp <6753.T> 
  Sharp and Japan's Renesas Technology Corp and Taiwan's 
Powerchip Semiconductor Corp <5346.TWO> will set up a joint 
venture to develop and sell LCD drivers for mobile phones to 
better fight price falls. [ID:nT288028] 
    -- Tokyo Electron <8035.T> 
    Tokyo Electron will likely post an 18 percent rise in group 
net profit to about 108 billion yen in the year to March, better 
than its previous forecast for a 14 percent rise thanks 
production cost cuts, the Nikkei business daily said on Thursday. 
    -- Toda Corp <1860.T> 
    The construction company slashed its full-year profit outlook 
on Wednesday due to rising costs of construction materials and 
labour. 
    It now expects 5 billion yen in operating profit for the year 
to March 31, down 42.5 percent from the previous forecast. 
    -- Nippon Sheet Glass Co Ltd <5202.T> 
    The glass maker posted a 79.2 percent increase in operating 
profit on Wednesday for April-December, helped by a contribution 
from British unit Pilkington. 
    It said operating profit was 40.8 billion yen, buoyed also by 
strong sales of construction glass in Europe, offsetting weak 
demand in the United States due to a housing slump. 
    -- Japan Communications Inc <9424.OJ> 
    NTT DoCoMo Inc <9437.T> has agreed to lease access to its 
cellular network to Japan Communications, the Nikkei business 
daily reported on Thursday. 
    -- Mizuho Financial Group <8411.T> and other banks 
    Subprime losses at Japanese banks more than doubled to 600 
billion yen in the final quarter of last year with total exposure 
to subprime-related investments hitting $14 billion, Japan's 
financial regulator said on Wednesday. [ID:nT279975] 
 ($1=108.26 Yen) 
       (Reporting by Elaine Lies) 
     (([email protected]; +81 3 3432 8485; Reuters 
Messaging:[email protected])) 
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