TOKYO - Japanese stocks recovered from an early plunge Friday as investors scooped up shares that have been beaten down in recent days.
While investors remained worried that a possible U.S. recession could hurt exporters' profits, they were heartened by hopes for emergency stimulus measures that President Bush planned to outline later in the day.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index rose 77.84 points, or 0.57 percent, to close at 13,861.29 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The index broke a four-day losing streak Thursday, when it jumped 2.07 percent.
The Nikkei fell as much as 3 percent in early trade, sliding in the wake of an overnight plunge on Wall Street driven partly by unexpectedly weak U.S. manufacturing numbers. But it clawed its way back on bargain-hunting.
"Overly sold sectors such as real estate are especially being bought back," said Toshio Sumitani, senior strategist at Tokai Tokyo Research center. "If the market welcomes what President Bush announces later today, the Nikkei will probably recover 1,000 points easily, early next week."
Sumitomo Realty & Development Co. surged 8.01 percent to 2,425 yen, while Mitsui Fudosan Co. climbed 6.1 percent to 2,260 yen. Kobe Steel rose 3.81 percent to 354 yen, and Nippon Steel Corp. jumped 5.23 percent to 663 yen.
The broader Topix index, which includes all shares on the first section, added 11.06 points, or 0.83 percent, to 1,341.50.
In currencies, the U.S. dollar was trading at 106.96 yen at 2:50 p.m. Friday, down from 107.00 yen late Thursday in New York. The euro fell to $1.4640 from $1.4673.
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