Biogen wins European approval for new MS drug

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* Trading may be subdued before slew of events this week - traders * Nissan down on report saying it may raise stake in Renault By Ayai Tomisawa TOKYO, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Japans Nikkei share average rose on Tuesday morning as a weak yen and rising U.S. futures underpinned sentiment, shrugging off soft Chinese factory surveys. Activity in Chinas manufacturing sector contracted more than expected in November, an official survey showed on Tuesday. A separate private survey also showed factory activity contracted for the ninth straight month in November. But traders said the weak outcome in the surveys was priced into the market when Japanese stocks fell on Monday. A weak yen and rising U.S. futures dominate market sentiment today, said Yutaka Miura, senior technical analyst at Mizuho Securities, adding that investors remain bullish about the Japanese market although they may sell when the Nikkei benchmark gets closer to 20,000. He said that trading volume may be thin on Tuesday before big events this week, including Thursdays European Central Bank policy review and Fridays U.S. jobs report. U.S. futures rose, pining risk appetite in Asian trade. Analysts said the ECB, widely expected to add further stimulus at Thursdays meeting, could lift risk sentiment in risky assets including Japanese equities. The Nikkei rose 0.9 percent to 19,918.52 in mid-morning trade, after falling 0.7 percent on the previous day. The dollar traded above 123.00 yen overnight for the first time in a week. At 0129 GMT, it traded at 123.11. Investors looked ahead to the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report which will be out on Friday. A solid report would cement expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve is on track to increase interest rates this month for the first time in nearly a decade. Exporters gained ground, with Honda Motor Co rising 2.7 percent and Advantest Corp adding 2.1 percent. On the downside, Nissan Motor Co fell more than 3 percent after the Nikkei business daily said that the automaker is looking to raise its stake in Renault above 25 percent to block management interference in the alliance by the French government. The broader Topix gained 1.0 percent to 1,595.82 and the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 advanced 1.0 percent to 14,376.12. (Editing by Shri Navaratnam) View comments
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