TOKYO (AP) -- Honda Motor Co. reported record profit for a fiscal first quarter Friday as sales growth in new markets offset the damage from a stronger yen and soaring material costs.

Honda, Japan's No. 2 automaker, earned a better-than-expected 179.6 billion yen (US$1.68 billion) in the April-June quarter, up 8.1 percent from the same period the previous year. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had forecast 131.3 billion yen (US$1.2 billion) in quarterly profit.

Sales for the quarter dipped 2.2 percent from a year ago to 2.867 trillion yen (US$26.79 billion), largely because the rising yen eroded the value of overseas earnings. If the yen's value had held at levels of a year ago, sales would have jumped about 7 percent, Honda said.

Riding on its reputation for making cars with good mileage, the Tokyo-based manufacturer of the Civic and Accord compacts has racked up solid results despite worries among the world's automakers about a U.S. slowdown and rising steel prices.

Honda sold more vehicles worldwide than in any other fiscal first quarter at 962,000 vehicles, up 1.7 percent on year.

Cost-cutting, the decrease of auto discounts in North America and a lift from equity-related income from Chinese affiliates added to a strong performance, according to Honda.

Demand for Honda products is booming in Asia, Brazil and other new markets, making up for declines in vehicle sales in the U.S., Europe and Japan, it said.

Honda was the only automaker to record better U.S. sales in June compared with a year ago, while others saw sales plummet in the worst June for the industry in 17 years.

Still, Honda lowered its vehicle sales forecast for the fiscal year through March 2009 to 4.08 million vehicles, less optimistic than its earlier prediction for 4.14 million vehicles. The lowered forecast marks a 3.9 percent jump from the previous year.

The forecast downgrade is largely because of faltering auto sales in North America, where Honda, like other automakers, is adjusting production away from trucks to smaller fuel-efficient models that are more attractive to buyers as gas prices go up.

Honda maintained its outlook for profit for the current fiscal year at 490 billion yen (US$4.58 billion), down 18.3 percent from earnings for the year ended March 31, 2008. It expects fiscal year sales to climb 1.1 percent to 12.13 trillion yen (US$113.36 billion).

Other Japanese automakers are also expected to be hurt by the rising yen and a U.S. slowdown.

Toyota Motor Corp., which beat General Motors Corp. in global vehicles sales for the first half, reports results next week. Nissan Motor Co., the nation's No. 3 automaker, also announces earnings next week.

Japanese carmakers have avoided the deep losses of U.S. car companies, which are struggling to shift to smaller models.

On Thursday, Ford Motor Co. said it lost US$8.67 billion in the second quarter and will retool two more North American truck and sport utility vehicle plants to build small, fuel-efficient vehicles.

GM, which lost US$3.3 billion in the first quarter, is closing four North American assembly plants, cutting thousands of jobs, selling assets and suspending its dividend in an effort to raise cash.

Honda shares dipped 2.1 percent to 3,760 yen (US$35). Honda released earnings data shortly after trading ended.

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TOKYO (AP) -- A new rechargeable battery pack made by Sanyo Electric Co. will allow Nintendo Wii gamers to keep their controllers juiced without buying new batteries.

The wireless Wii controller normally uses two standard AA batteries that are installed under a cover. Nintendo says alkaline batteries can last up to 30 hours, which means that devoted gamers must buy lots of new batteries.

Sanyo's device replaces the batteries and cover with a rechargeable battery pack, allowing the controller to be charged by simply placing it in a charging stand. It charges through magnetic induction, with no plugs or battery swaps needed.

Sanyo says the battery pack can be recharged in less than four hours.

It says the device will go on sale in Japan on Aug. 25 and is officially licensed by Nintendo. No plans for overseas sales were announced.

Nintendo's Wii game console has been a smash hit since its 2006 release, in large part due to its unique wireless controller. The wand-like controller is equipped with motion sensors that allow users to control game action by jabbing and swinging it through the air.

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NAGOYA, Japan (AP) -- Grand champion Hakuho won his bout at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament on Friday to secure his seventh Emperor's Cup.

The Mongolian fought off several arm thrusts from ozeki Kaio and then calmly forced his opponent out to improve to 13-0 and wrap up the title with two days left in the 15-day competition at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium.

Kaio dropped to 8-5.

With Mongolian compatriot and grand champion Asashoryu absent after pulling out with injuries a week ago, Hakuho faced little resistance in the Nagoya meet.

In an earlier bout, ozeki Kotomitsuki had temporarily kept his slim title hopes alive with a hard-fought win over Miyabiyama to improve to 10-3. Miyabiyama, a No. 5 maegashira, fell to 7-6.

Now, all Kotomitsuki can shoot for is a chance to spoil Hakuho's bid for a perfect record when the two faceoff on Saturday.

Lower-ranked wrestler Toyohibiki defeated Tokitenku (7-6) in an earlier bout to improve to 10-3.

Sekiwake Ama forced out Mongolian compatriot Asasekiryu to pick up his ninth win against four losses. Asasekiryu, a No. 2 maegashira, dropped to 8-5.

With nothing but personal pride on the line, Bulgarian Kotooshu overpowered ozeki rival Chiyotaikai to improve to 9-4.

Kotooshu came into the tournament looking for promotion to grand champion after winning the previous tournament -- the first European to do so -- but quickly lost the chance to move up the ranks with three early losses in this event.

Chiytaikai, who dropped to 8-5, has ensure he finishes with the winning record he needed to maintain his ozeki status.

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KOBE, Japan (AP) -- Substitute Shinji Okazaki scored late in the second half Thursday to lift Japan to a 2-1 win over Australia in a tuneup for the men's Olympic football tournament.

Archie Thompson put Australia ahead in the 34th minute but Shinji Kagawa equalized seven minutes later.

Okazaki gave the hosts the win with just two minutes left after picking up a loose ball and firing home from close range.

Japan has been drawn against United States, Nigeria and the Netherlands in a tough first-round Group B in Beijing. They will complete their Olympic preparations with a friendly against Argentina in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Australia faces Argentina, Ivory Coast and Serbia in Group A in Beijing.

Earlier Thursday, Japan's women's team defeated Australia 3-0, getting goals from Homare Sawa, Yuki Nagasato and substitute Karina Maruyama.

Japan's women have been drawn against the U.S., Norway and New Zealand at the Olympics, while Australia's women's team did not qualify.

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The Tokyo High Court on Friday upheld a 2 1/2 year prison sentence handed down on former Livedoor Co. President Takafumi Horie, who faced charges of violating the Securities and Exchange Law in connection with fraudulent accounting at the company.

In handing down its decision, the high court dismissed an appeal against a lower court ruling. Horie's lawyers, who had argued that he was innocent, planned to file an appeal in the Supreme Court.

Horie, who founded Livedoor, was convicted in an earlier district court ruling of padding the company's accounts by over 5.3 billion yen in the financial period ending in September 2004. He was accused of listing over 3.76 billion yen from the sale of the company's shares as profits when the amount could not normally be regarded as profits. He also stood accused of listing up 1.58 billion yen in fictitious sales to two companies that later became subsidiaries.

In the high court appeal trial launched in February this year, Horie's lawyers argued that the district court ruling had illegally made a decision on a point other than what the focus of the trial was decided to be in pretrial arrangement procedures. They added that the former president had not padded accounts intentionally, and said that even if he were found guilty, a prison term without suspension was too heavy.

Prosecutors had argued that the earlier district court ruling was appropriate.

Three of four other Livedoor officials in the case have been handed suspended sentences that have become fixed. The ruling on a high court appeal in the trial of Livedoor's former chief financial officer, Ryoji Miyauchi, who was handed a prison sentence in a district court ruling, is due to be handed down in September.

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KOFU -- A district court judge accused of violating a law against stalking by persistently sending anonymous e-mails to a subordinate admitted to the charges against him as his trial opened in the Kofu District Court on Friday.

The 55-year-old judge, Yoshiharu Shimoyama, said there was "no doubt" over the allegations against him. It is only the third time in Japan for an incumbent judge to face a criminal trial. The previous case involved a Tokyo High Court judge who was convicted of violating the law against child prostitution.

In their opening statements in the case, public prosecutors said Shimoyama had romantic feelings for a woman, but she began to avoid him, so he sent e-mails to her posing as another person, trying to get close to her by being empathetic.

In the hearing, lawyers for Shimoyama read out a message from him saying, "All I can do is express my apologies toward the victim. I feel ashamed at the stupid actions I've carried out."

Shimoyama was accused of sending 16 e-mails to the cell phone of a subordinate in her 20s between February and March this year, while he was serving as head of the Tsuru branch of the Kofu district and family courts, making sexual references in the e-mails. In one e-mail he reportedly wrote, "Lunchtime was fun, wasn't it? It was like there was perfect physical chemistry!"

While sending anonymous e-mails, there were also some that revealed his identity. Shimoyama allegedly took on two roles in the e-mails: stalker and advisor to the woman.

Shimoyama passed the bar exam in 1981, and in April 2004 he was appointed head of the Tsuru branch of the Kofu district and family courts. In April this year he became head of the Ashikaga branch of the Utsunomiya district and family courts. The Supreme Court has sought prosecution of Shimoyama, filing a request to have him dismissed in an impeachment trial, and the Diet's judge indictment committee is conducting an investigation.

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Former Livedoor Co. President Takafumi Horie stayed away from the Tokyo High Court on Friday as it upheld a lower court ruling that handed him a 2 1/2 year prison sentence, while the court's presiding judge criticized his attitude.

Horie, the founder of Livedoor, did not appear at any of the four hearings in his high court appeal -- a contrast with the district court proceedings, when he appeared and strongly protested his innocence.

In handing down the ruling on Friday, Presiding Judge Tetsuji Nagaoka criticized Horie's attitude.

"He has a poor awareness of social norms and shows unwillingness to readily accept the situation," the judge said.

Defendants are not obliged to appear in court for appeal hearings, and Horie said he had stayed away from the court "to avoid confusion."

In a hearing in April the former president presented a written report, saying, "I was in too much of a hurry with my life. If anyone has been hurt by my words I want to deeply apologize. I worked with development of the stock market in mind, but I ended up bringing about distrust of the market." The statement came in contrast to his fierce opposition to public prosecutors in his district court trial. However, Nagaoka swept it aside, saying, "The defendant shows no sign of remorse over his crime."

After the ruling on Friday, lawyer Yasuyuki Takai held a news conference, saying he could not accept the high court's decision.

"I feel doubt over whether the records about the problems we presented in the high court were read seriously," Takai said.

Sources close to Horie said the he is still living in a luxury Roppongi Hills condominium shared with a male assistant. He reportedly sometimes goes out to play golf or take trips around Japan with his former supporters. He was unhappy with the district court ruling and had said that if the high court upheld a guilty ruling he would immediately appeal.

In April last year, Livedoor changed its name to Livedoor Holdings Co. (LDH). In July the same year, the company moved from Roppongi Hills to Akasaka. It has distanced itself from Horie to create a new image, preparing to file a damages lawsuit against the former president and former company officials. Still, as of March this year, Horie remained the second-biggest shareholder of LDH, holding about 1.81 million shares.

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Actress Mikako Tabe will star in NHK's morning serial drama to start next spring, the public broadcaster has announced.

Tabe, 19, will play the role of a woman who dreams of succeeding at establishing a Japanese-style confectionary store in Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture, in the morning drama, "Tsubasa," the broadcaster said on Thursday.

It is the first time that a NHK morning drama series will be set in Saitama Prefecture. All other prefectures in Japan have hosted NHK morning drama series.

Tabe's career includes roles in the NTV drama "Yasuko and Kenji" and the movie "Saiyuki." She belongs to the same talent agency as actress Aoi Miyazaki, who starred in NHK's morning drama sequel "Junjo Kirari" two years ago.

"I've just heard that I will be the main act, and, to be honest, it has not sunk in yet. I'm simply surprised. It will take long to shoot the drama, but I hope I can convey various thoughts through it," a nervous Tabe said.

"Tsubasa" will be the 80th installment of NHK's morning drama series.

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Toyota Motor Corp. is considering boosting domestic vehicle prices by 1 to 3 percent, mainly for its high-end cars, to respond to steep rises in the costs of steel products and other raw materials, it has been learned.

It is extremely rare for an automaker to increase prices other than when it is upgrading a vehicle line. The company is considering introducing the price rise as early as August, and if prices do go up, a ripple effect may be observed among other manufacturers.

Toyota has continued to make an effort to absorb cost increases through enhanced efficiency, reviewing the cost price of all lines of its vehicles for the first time in 15 years this year. However, a planned 300 billion yen cost reduction planned for fiscal 2008 is likely to be wiped out by increases in the cost of raw materials, and more steep rises are predicted in the future.

"Over the past three years, the cost price has risen by 60,000 to 70,000 yen per vehicle, exceeding the limit (of our ability to absorb costs)," a Toyota official commenting on the situation said.

However, the official voiced concern that increasing prices for all lines could lead to stagnation in the market. In light of such concern, the company is reportedly considering restricting price increases to high-end vehicles such as its Crown cars, as many buyers of such vehicles are wealthy-class customers and the effect of price increases is comparatively low.

It is likely that recommended retail prices would increase by up to 100,000 yen per vehicle if the company's price increases came into effect.

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Most young people take the meaning of certain old-style expressions in Japanese in the opposite way from their original meaning, a government study has found.

A poll by the Agency for Cultural Affairs revealed that 70 percent of those between their 10s and 30s think the meaning of the Japanese expression "nitsumaru" is "to fall into an inconclusive situation." In fact, the expression means "to get closer to conclusion after discussion."

In contrast, over 70 percent of those over 50 gave the correct meaning.

As for the expression, "geki wo tobasu," 70 to 80 percent of each generation gave a different meaning from the original. In fact, the expression means to "issue a manifesto."

Many respondents said Japanese people need to learn more about honorific expressions and boost their ability to listen to others correctly. However, those who admitted they had to improve their own language skills were few, implying that many people tend to put a higher importance on the communication abilities of others.

The survey, which covered 1,975 men and women aged 16 or older, found that only 16.3 percent of teens could give the correct meaning for the expression, "nitsumaru," while the figure stood at 26.6 percent for those in their 20s. On the other hand, 77.3 percent of those in their 50s could define the meaning correctly, while 73.1 percent of people over 60 gave the right meaning.

However, when it came to the meaning of "buzen," which means "to be in despair and unable to do anything," 36.3 percent of teens gave the correct meaning, while the figure dropped to 15.3 percent for those over 60.

Many people placed importance on the knowledge of honorific expressions (42.1 percent); the ability to listen to others correctly (36.8 percent); and the importance to grasp the feeling of others or the situation (31.6 percent). However, those who cited one of these three areas as the reason they were not confident with their Japanese language ability ranged from 10 to 26 percent.

Others said they need to boost their ability to explain things or give presentations (32.5 percent) and to arrange their thoughts and compose sentences (29.8 percent).

Those who find that Japanese people today use their language in an incorrect manner dropped to 79.5 percent, compared to 80.4 percent in a similar survey conducted in fiscal 2002.

Among those who think the opposite, 39.1 percent said, "Words change with the times," an increase from 30.1 percent in fiscal 2002.

The survey also asked about 60 terms of foreign origin that are often used in documents in government ministries and agencies.

Compared to a similar survey in fiscal 2002, the percentage of people who understand the meaning of such information-related words as "Web site" and "log in" increased.

Those who said they know, or are familiar with, the meaning of "Web site" increased to 59.4 percent, up by 27.5 percentage points from five years ago, while 55.4 percent said the same for the term "log in," up by 26.5 percentage points.

Meanwhile, 60.9 percent said they have heard of the term "assessment," but only 27.2 percent said they actually know the meaning of the word. As to "innovation," 60.8 percent said they have heard the term, but only 23.9 percent actually knew its meaning.

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Prosecutors have started procedures to repay about 2.9 billion yen in confiscated funds from abroad to victims of loan shark schemes carried out by a criminal syndicate.

The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office on Friday initiated procedures to return to the victims the criminal profits collected by the former Goryokai-affiliated gang under loan shark schemes after the money was returned by the Zurich state government in Switzerland to Japan. The gang was affiliated with the Yamaguchi-gumi criminal syndicate.

It is the first time for criminal profits that were confiscated abroad to be returned to criminal victims based on a law on the payment to recover damages, which went into effect in December 2006.

The victims are expected to file an application for repayment by Jan. 26 next year and will be repaid according to the amount of their losses.

Prosecutors have appointed four lawyers as caretakers for repayment procedures. They will send application forms to about 35,000 people whom investigators recognized as victims. Based on the applications, the caretakers will determine whom to give the returned money to.

The victims transmitted money to 598 accounts belonging to 392 loan sharks between 1988 and August 2003. Those who have not received an application form for the repayment but have records of monetary transmissions over the case can apply for repayment.

According to the ruling, Susumu Kajiyama, 58, a prison inmate who was called the kingpin of loan sharks, hid about 5.9 billion yen in an account in Switzerland in 2003.

For more information, call the Goryokai Jiken Higai Kaifuku Center at: 03-3595-1201. (in Japanese)

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TAKO, Chiba -- Four bodies were found in the charred remains of a house after it caught fire early on Friday morning, police said.

A mother and her three children living in the house are missing, and police are trying to identify the bodies, as well as the cause of the fire.

According to police, a fire broke out at the house of Koji Uchida, 39, an elementary school teacher, in Tako at around 9 a.m. on Friday. The fire consumed the entire two-story house before it was extinguished.

Uchida's 30-year-old wife, Hiromi, and their 5-year-old twin sons, Yuki and Yoshiki, as well as their nine-month-old baby girl, Sakura, remain missing and are believed to be the victims, police said.

Uchida had left home before the fire started. The house is located about three kilometers northeast of the center of Tako and is surrounded by fields dotted with private houses.

Shizuo Suzuki, 62, a farmer who lives about 150 meters away from Uchida's house said, "I learned about the fire at around 9 a.m. through the community wireless system that announced there was a fire in Kitanaka. The fire started in the first floor and then fiercely burned the second floor. The detached house is about 10 years old."

Another male neighbor in his 60s said the fire raged inside the house and thick black smoke was billowing from it before the fire was extinguished 30 or 40 minutes later.

"The exterior of the house did not burn, so the fire did not spread to neighboring houses," he said.

A 24-year-old female company employee who lives in the vicinity said, "The family tend to be absent in the morning, so I thought they were not in the house today."

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NAHA -- Okinawa Gov. Hirokazu Nakaima said the central government has a "tacit agreement" to relocate the Futenma Air Station offshore as sought by Okinawa Prefecture.

Nakaima's remarks, which came during a press conference at the Okinawa Prefectural Government on Friday, may stir controversy as the government has reiterated it will discuss the planned relocation of the air base with the possibility of moving it offshore but that it will be difficult to change an original plan without logical reasons.

Plans have been discussed to relocate the Futenma Air Station in Ginowan, Okinawa Prefecture, to along the coast of Nago in the prefecture.

On July 18, the government and Okinawa Prefecture's council on the relocation decided to newly establish two work teams so the central government and the prefecture can discuss such topics as how to make the air station safe, construction plans and an environment assessment for the planned relocation.

During Friday's press conference, Nakaima said referring to the move, "My understanding is that the two work teams will be able to advance discussions as the government tacitly agrees (to relocate the base offshore)."

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A Seibu Kanko tourist bus ran off the road into a forest while traveling along Route 352 near the village of Hinoemata in Fukushima Prefecture on Thursday, leaving one person with a bone fracture and 26 others with minor injuries.

An investigation by Minamiaizu Police showed that driver Kazuyoshi Taki, 54, failed to negotiate a sharp downhill left-hander, sending the bus off the opposite side of the road and down a 10-meter slope into a forest below.

The bus was carrying 28 members of a local mountain climbing club, aged between 52 and 71, back home to Aizuwakamatsu after a day's hiking in Oze.

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YOKOHAMA -- The Yokohama Municipal Board of Education has dismissed an elementary school teacher who wrote on an Internet blog that he wanted to kill his boss, it has been learned.

The 29-year-old teacher at the municipal elementary school in Yokohama's Tsurumi-ku was discharged on Thursday.

Board officials said that from about June, the teacher, whose name has been withheld, wrote in a blog that he wanted to "eliminate" the school's vice-principal and wrote "die" 51 times directly after the name of a female teacher.

The educator also reportedly wrote, "If a teacher is murdered, it will be me who's responsible, for certain."

The teacher's actions were uncovered after the online information was relayed to municipal government officials by prefectural authorities in March on July 3. When questioned over the messages, the teacher reportedly said he was not happy.

"I wrote feelings that I had no way of expressing. I had absolutely no intention of killing anyone," he was quoted as saying.

Since entries in blogs are not officially considered grounds for disciplinary action, the teacher was discharged in line with regulations of the National Personnel Authority, a body established under the Cabinet of the Japanese government.

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CHIBA -- Chiba police arrested a 60-year-old Hyogo resident on Thursday for making phone threats against the president of Tokyo-based Yamazaki Baking Co.

Suspect Tsutomu Kashimoto told police: "I had a grudge against the company." He was arrested for intimidation.

Kashimoto made nine threatening phone calls from public payphones in Amagasaki and other locations to Yamazaki President Nobuhiro Iijima, 66, at his home in Matsudo, Chiba Prefecture, between Aug. 1, 2007 and May 26 of this year, police allege.

While the suspect threatened revenge against Yamazaki, there is no record of Kashimoto working at the company and police have yet to determine a motive.

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HANOI, Vietnam (AP) -- Japan's foreign minister visited Vietnam on Friday to boost economic ties and bilateral relations with the communist country, where Tokyo is the biggest aid donor.

Masahiko Komura made a one-day stop in Hanoi, where he met with his Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Gia Khiem, and President Nguyen Minh Triet.

Komura attended the second meeting of the Japan-Vietnam Economic Committee, which helps to build economic cooperation between the two countries. He also attended a signing ceremony for a project that sends Vietnamese civil servants to Japan for education, said Japanese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kazuo Kodama.

Komura's visit came after he attended a Southeast Asian security forum in Singapore. North Korea's foreign minister, coming from the same meeting, also visited Hanoi but the two diplomats were not expected to meet in Vietnam, Kodama said.

Japan is Vietnam's largest aid donor and is helping to build several major projects including a highway connecting the country's north and south, a high-speed train system and an information technology industrial park.

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Fukushu-en (Fukushu Garden) is a Chinese-style garden located in Naha City. It was constructed to celebrate the city’s historical ties to China’s Fujian province and current relationship with the city of Fuzhou.

For hundreds of years, the Ryukyu Kingdom had solid trade relations with China. Thousands of vessels moved back and forth between the nations, not only carrying goods such as Chinese porcelain but also ferrying passengers, including emissaries wishing to better understand the culture of their trading partners and artisans and builders seeking to expand their knowledge of their craft. The Chinese influence can be seen in the architecture, cuisine, and culture of Okinawa.

In 1981, Naha City (the capital of Okinawa Prefecture) and Fuzhou City, China (the capital of the Fujian province, with which Okinawa traded a great deal) cemented their historical ties by becoming modern-day sister cities. To mark the 10th anniversary of this tie, as well as the 70th anniversary of the incorporation of Naha City, construction began on Fukushu-en.

Designers in Fuzhou drafted plans for the garden's layout, hoping to represent the natural beauty of their home nation as well as particular scenic spots from throughout their home city. Chinese technicians came to Okinawa to ensure the gardens were as authentic as possible, and even imported special materials for the project. The result is a tranquil space where visitors can relax and reflect in the middle of the bustling city.

The gardens are divided into areas entitled Shadow, Brilliance, and Light, and the fauna in each is designed to give visitors a visual treat throughout the seasons. The grounds are enclosed by a tall, concrete wall that separates them from the hustle and bustle of Naha City. Pagodas and pavilions ring a central pond filled with hungry fish that are fed by visitors. Also scattered throughout the grounds are large banyan trees (native to Okinawa and Fuzhou) and dozens of detailed carvings of dragons, mystical creatures, and Buddha.

To get to Fukushu-en, head south on Highway 58 from Camp Foster. At Kumoji intersection (Highway 42), turn right. Continue straight for about one half of a kilometer. Fukushu-en is on the left. The gardens are open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and entrance is free. Free parking is available across the street.

Fukushu-en Photos

TOKYO (AP) -- Japanese camera maker Canon Inc. said Thursday its second-quarter profit fell 13 percent from a year ago as a stronger yen chipped away at the value of booming overseas sales of color copiers.

Canon recorded a 107.84 billion yen (US$1.0 billion) profit for April-June, down from 123.93 billion yen the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales totaled 1.106 trillion yen (US$10.26 billion), down 1.9 percent from 1.127 trillion yen.

The sharp rise of the yen against the dollar was the biggest culprit, Canon said. Calculated in local currencies, sales of digital cameras, office equipment for copying and faxing, and other products jumped on year, it said.

The dollar averaged 104.69 against the yen in the first half of the year, reflecting a 13 percent jump in the value of Japan's currency. That eroded the value of overseas earnings of Japanese exporters such as Canon.

The impact from currency fluctuations erased 118.9 billion yen (US$1.1 billion) from Canon's first half sales, the company said. For the first six months of the year, Canon's net profit dipped 15.9 percent to 214.49 billion yen (US$2.0 billion).

Slowdowns and sluggish spending in the U.S., Europe and Japan also helped push down sales, although growth was robust in China and the rest of Asia, according to Canon.

For the three months ended June 30, sales in Japan fell 3.1 percent from the previous year, while sales in the Americas dropped 6.1 percent, Canon said. Sales in other areas rose 6.4 percent, it said.

Tokyo-based Canon kept its profit forecast unchanged at 500 billion yen (US$4.6 billion) for the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, a target of a 2.4 percent increase from the previous year.

It raised its full-year sales outlook to 4.59 trillion yen (US$42.6 billion), up from an earlier forecast of 4.57 trillion yen. The new forecast marks a 2.4 percent rise from the year ended Dec. 31, 2007.

Canon said its expects demand for digital cameras and color laser beam printers to keep growing, although price competition will intensify.

Canon acknowledged that worries about the U.S. subprime loan crisis and this year's high oil prices weigh on profit prospects.

But the U.S. economy is likely to recover in coming months, lifted by stimulus measures, and growth can be expected in Russia and other new markets, the company said in its earnings release.

Canon hopes to maintain its No. 1 position in the world in its core businesses, including digital cameras and laser beam printers, it said. It also hopes to expand into new fields, including nanotechnology, life sciences and the display business, and is also looking into merger and tie-up opportunities.

Canon shares climbed 3.7 percent to 5,360 yen (US$49.72) on Thursday. Trading ended before its earnings were announced.

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TOKYO (AP) -- Japanese shares rose for the third straight session Thursday, lifted by further gains on Wall Street and a continuing slide in oil prices.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index increased 290.38 points, or 2.18 percent, to close at 13,603.31.

"The index was supported by external factors such as a rise in the U.S. market and falling oil prices," said Yutaka Miura, senior strategist at Shinko Securities Co. Ltd.

Investors continued to buy banking stocks amid easing worries over the health of the U.S. financial sector, Miura said, while export-linked stocks ended higher, helped by a softening yen.

A weak yen makes Japanese goods price competitive abroad and boosts the value of repatriated profits by local exporters.

But Miura warned the Nikkei's winning streak might not last long.

"Investors cannot find domestic leads to buy stocks. Right now the index's performance depends on moves in U.S. shares and oil prices," he said.

Japan's top automaker, Toyota Motor Corp., jumped 5.13 percent to 5,120 yen. Toyota on Wednesday beat General Motors Corp. by selling more vehicles globally during the first six months of the year.

Toyota sold 4,8 million vehicles during the period. GM sold 4.5 million.

Sony Corp. rose 3.88 percent to 4,550 yen. Matsushita Electrical Industrial Co., which sells products under its Panasonic brand, gained 1.79 percent to 2,275 yen.

Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan's largest securities business group, jumped 4.24 percent to 1,695 yen. Financial giant Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. gained 2.18 percent to 1,032 yen.

The Topix index of all shares listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section rose 2.24 percent to 1,332.6.

In currencies, the dollar stood at 107.73 yen midafternoon in Tokyo, down from 107.90 yen in New York Wednesday. The euro stood at US$1.5677, compared with US$1.5683 in New York.

In Asian electronic trading Thursday, light, sweet crude for September delivery held steady just above US$124 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell nearly US$4 a barrel Wednesday on concerns over slowing U.S. demand.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 29.88 points, or 0.26 percent, Wednesday to 11,632.38. It rose nearly 100 points early in the session after gaining 135 points the previous day.

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TOKYO (AP) -- Japan's trade surplus in June fell 88.9 percent from a year earlier marking the fourth straight month of decline, the government announced Thursday.

The Finance Ministry said the surplus shrank to 138.6 billion yen (US$1.28 billion) as imports grew amid soaring oil prices and other commodities.

Overall imports grew 16.2 percent to 7.21 trillion yen (US$66.76 billion) in June, while exports dipped 1.7 percent to 7.16 trillion yen (US$66.30 billion), the ministry said.

Japan's politically sensitive trade surplus with the United States fell by 40.2 percent, down for the 10th straight month on slower exports of cars, auto parts and mineral fuels.

The nation's trade surplus with Asia dipped 6.3 percent, falling for the first time in three months due to rising imports of oil, natural gas and coal, the ministry said. The trade surplus with China fell 65.5 percent.

Japan's trade surplus in the first half of 2008, meanwhile, fell 42.1 percent from a year earlier to 2.959 trillion yen (US$27.40 billion), the ministry said Thursday. Imports grew 10.5 percent, outpacing exports that increased 3.9 percent.

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NAGOYA (AP) -- Mongolian Hakuho is on the brink of winning his seventh Emperor's Cup after defeating Chiyotaikai on Thursday at the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament.

Grand champion Hakuho fought off an arm thrust from Chiyotaikai and calmly forced the ozeki out in the day's final bout at Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium to improve to a perfect 12-0. Chiyotaikai fell to 8-4.

Hakuho, who has a three-win lead over Kotomitsuki and Toyohibiki, can wrap up the title on Friday with a win over ozeki Kaio.

In other major bouts, ozeki Kotomitsuki kept his slim title hopes alive and improved to 9-3 in the 15-day meet when he overpowered fourth-ranked maegashira Goeido, who dropped to 6-6.

No. 13 maegashira Toyohibiki shoved out Kimurayama in an earlier bout to improve to 9-3.

Ozeki Kaio spun Wakanosato around after the faceoff and shoved the No. 4 maegashira to improve to 8-4. Wakanosato fell to 5-7.

Mongolian sekiwake Ama got a hold of Kotooshu's arm and flung the Bulgarian ozeki off the ring to pick up his eighth win against four losses.

Kotooshu, who came into the tournament looking for promotion to grand champion, was handed his fourth loss of the tournament and will have to wait for another chance to reach sumo's highest rank.

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At least 107 people were injured, 16 of them seriously, in a powerful earthquake that jolted Iwate Prefecture and surrounding areas in the early hours of Thursday, police said.

Twenty houses were partially damaged by the temblor that struck at around 12:26 a.m. on Thursday.

The quake measured upper 6 on the 7-point Japanese intensity scale in Hirono and lower 6 in the Iwate Prefecture village of Noda, and Hachinohe, Gonohe and Hashikami in Aomori Prefecture. No tsunami warning was issued.

The focus of the temblor, which is estimated at 6.8 on the open-ended Richter scale, was located 108 kilometers below the ground along the Pacific coast of northern Iwate Prefecture.

Two fires were triggered by the earthquake, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.

The government set up an earthquake task force at the crisis management center of the prime minister's office at 12:34 a.m., less than 10 minutes after the earthquake.

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A senior executive of a Foreign Ministry-related organization was arrested on Thursday for evading about 74 million yen in income tax over consultation fees he received from defense contractors, prosecutors said.

Naoki Akiyama, 58, senior executive director of the Japan-U.S. Center for Peace and Cultural Exchange, stands accused of violating the Income Tax Law by concealing about 232 million yen he received as consultation fees from defense contractors over three years up to 2005.

Before Thursday's arrest, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office had been investigating Akiyama over an illicit flow of funds. He is alleged to be a liaison between lawmakers with defense interests and defense contractors in Japan and the United States.

Investigators were questioning defense contractors that had paid consultation fees to Add-Back International Corp. in Los Angeles, which Akiyama established, and other corporations.

According to sources close to the case, Akiyama allegedly hid the money he received from Yamada Corp. and other defense contractors by forwarding the funds to Add-Back International and two other corporations in the United States.

Akiyama reportedly received about 500 million yen, including money paid under the guise of membership fees for the center, between 2004 and 2006. Of the amount, prosecutors deemed more than 200 million yen as his personal income after deducting expenses.

Prosecutors had been investigating the corporations in the United States after raiding the Japan-U.S. Center for Peace and Cultural Exchange in connection with a corruption scandal involving former administrative vice minister for defense Takemasa Moriya, 63, last year.

On Thursday morning, Akiyama categorically denied the allegations when he was interviewed by reporters in front of his home in Tokyo's Toshima-ku. "For me, it's total nonsense."

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Those who knew the victim of a fatal stabbing at a station shopping center in Tokyo's Hachioji mourned over her death one day after the rampage on Wednesday.

"It is unforgivable. I want to kill (the murderer)," said Masami Obata, a 45-year-old female part-time worker from Tokyo, who is a former colleague of Mana Saiki, 22, a university student who died in Tuesday's fatal attack at the Keio Line's Hachioji Station building where she was working at a bookstore.

Worried about Saiki's safety after learning about the incident through TV news programs, Obata sent Saiki a mobile e-mail message shortly past 11 p.m. on Tuesday. "Are you OK, Mana-chan!? The reported victim's age is about the same as yours, so I'm worried. You are OK, right!?" the e-mail read.

Obata, however, never received a reply from Saiki and was unable to sleep on Tuesday night. She later learned that the victim was Saiki through TV early the next morning.

Obata visited a stand set up for flowers for the victim in front of the station building in Hachioji on Wednesday and tearfully offered flowers for Saiki.

Obata and Saiki were working at the same dry cleaner in Tokyo's Hino for about six months until two years ago, when Saiki quit to start working part-time at the bookstore in Hachioji, saying, "I like books."

In Saiki's hometown in Utsunomiya, a 49-year-old male teacher who taught Saiki at a local junior high school said, "I feel resentment against the suspect. It is too self-centered that he said he 'did not care who the victim was.'"

A female neighbor of Saiki's family home said "She was a polite girl who would greet people properly. Why on earth did such a lovable girl have to be killed?"

In her elementary school yearbook, Saiki wrote that she wanted to be a "gardening designer" in the future. She later went on to a leading public high school in Tochigi Prefecture.

"She had a strong sense of responsibility and was reliable. She also got good grades," said the vice principal of her high school.

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Economists are concerned the current heat wave will only temporarily push up consumer spending, which remains sluggish.

Research conducted by the Japan Research Institute (JRI) from 1980 to 2006 shows that if the average temperature over the July-September period rises by 1 degree Celsius, it pushes up overall consumer spending by 0.21 percent.

However, summer bonuses for employees at most of large companies declined from last summer, which is likely to discourage consumers from spending money.

"Even if consumer spending increases due to the heat wave, consumers do not necessarily have extra cash. In autumn, there may be a backlash. There is a possibility that the effect (of the heat wave on consumer spending) will not last long," says JRI senior researcher Naoko Ogata.

At electric appliance retail stores, air conditioners are selling particularly well. The number of air conditioners that Yodobashi Camera Co. outlets sold during the Saturday-Monday holiday period was 3.3 times the figure of the previous year and that of electric fans was 4.3 times greater than 2007.

At Family Mart convenience stores, ice cream sales on Monday and Tuesday rose 50 percent from the year earlier. A growing number of customers at Lawson convenience stores who buy sweets are choosing cold sweets.

July sales figures at a beer garden on the rooftop of Matsuzakaya Department Store's Ginza outlet in Tokyo doubled from those of last year.

The sales of clothes that had remained sluggish have bounced back, aided by summer wear such as tank tops. The number of swimsuits sold by Ito-Yokado supermarkets over a nine-day period up to Tuesday was 40 percent more than the year before.

The heat wave has adversely affected outdoor facilities. The number of visitors to Tokyo's Ueno Zoo on Monday, which fell on the Marine Day national holiday, came to about 11,000, about half the figure of last year.

The electric power consumption in the Kanto district surpassed 50 million kilowatts for seven consecutive days up to Wednesday, according to Tokyo Electric Power Co.

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Demand for gas-and-electric-powered vehicles is growing at rent-a-car companies across the country, industry insiders say.

A growing number of users are choosing "hybrid" vehicles because they are more energy efficient than ordinary cars and they emit less greenhouse gas as people are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of preventing global warming.

Nippon Rent-A-Car Service, a major rent-a-car company, has increased its number of hybrid cars more than five fold to about 800 over the past six months.

The company launched a new service for renting hybrid cars, called "Eco Class," in April. The rental fee for a Toyota Prius and Honda Civic Hybrid in the Eco Class service ranges from 11,025 to 11,550 yen per 24 hours during peak season, about 500 yen higher than the fee for ordinary vehicles of similar sizes.

However, if a user travels 200 kilometers in a hybrid car, about 8 liters of gasoline can be saved, and the price difference can be easily made up for as gasoline prices are now around 180 yen per liter.

The operating rate of hybrid cars at the firm exceed