TOKYO, March 18 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks are expected to
rise on Tuesday after falling nearly 4 percent the day before,
but gains are seen limited on worries about global credit and
concern about the dollar's weakness against the yen.

One stock to watch is Nippon Oil Corp (5001.T: Quote, Profile, Research), Japan's top
oil wholesaler, which was reported in Tuesday's Nikkei business
daily reported to be planning to acquire No.7 wholesaler Kyushu
Oil Co to build scale and become more efficient amid soaring
crude oil prices and sluggish domestic demand.

Banking-related shares may stay vulnerable after their
counterparts slid on Wall Street, with market attention fixed on
earnings due out from banks such as Lehman Brothers, though steps
taken at the weekend by the Fed have reassured the market for
now.

"There's a sense that the U.S. government is ready to respond
again if needed, and this has calmed the market a bit," said
Hiroichi Nishi, general manager at the equity division of Nikko
Cordial Securities.

Currency moves will also be closely watched after the dollar
fell to a nearly 13-year low against the yen on Monday, shadowing
the earnings outlook for Japanese exporters such as Toyota Motor
Corp (7203.T: Quote, Profile, Research). The dollar stabilised around the mid-97 yen level
in early Asian trade. JPY=

The Nikkei is expected to move from 11,700 to 11,950. It
ended Monday at 11,787.51.

In a sign of how stocks may move, Nikkei futures traded in
Chicao 2NKc1 finished at 11,805 compared to 11,750 in Monday's
Osaka close JNIc1.
----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2254 GMT ------------

INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG
S&P 500 .SPX 1276.6 -0.9% -11.540
USD/JPY JPY= 97.42 0.2% 0.190
10-YR US TSY YLD US10YT=RR 3.2988 -- 0.000
SPOT GOLD XAU= 1004.3 0.20% 2.000
US CRUDE CLc1 106.4 0.68% 0.720
DOW JONES .DJI 11972.25 0.18% 21.16
-------------------------------------------------------------
> Dow rises, S&P and Nasdaq down after Bear deal [.N]
> US dollar slumps in wake of Fed's emergency measures [USD/]
> Bonds soar as investors seek safety, await rate cut [US/]
> Gold ends up on safe-haven bids amid market fears [GOL]
> Oil slides over 4 pct as funds sell to raise cash [O/R]
STOCKS TO WATCH

-- Nippon Oil Corp (5001.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Nippon Oil, Japan's top oil wholesaler, plans to acquire No.7
wholesaler Kyushu Oil Co to build scale and become more efficient
amid soaring crude oil prices and sluggish domestic demand, the
Nikkei business daily reported on Tuesday.

Nippon Oil has begun negotiating with other Kyushu Oil
shareholders towards securing a 100 percent stake through stock
swaps and other methods. Kyushu Oil's top shareholder is Nippon
Steel Corp (5401.T: Quote, Profile, Research) with a 36 percent stake, the Nikkei said.

-- Mitsubishi Electric Corp (6503.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Mitsubishi Electric, whose stock hit a 2-½ year low on
Monday, said it expects an annual dividend of 13 yen per share
for the year ending March 31, up from 10 yen the previous year.

-- NTT DoCoMo Inc (9437.T: Quote, Profile, Research), Softbank Corp (9984.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

NTT DoCoMo, Japan's biggest mobile phone carrier, filed for
an injunction to halt sale of a handset using the network of No.3
Softbank Corp, marking the latest tussle in a bitter fight for
market share.

DoCoMo said on Monday a Softbank handset made by Toshiba Corp
(6502.T: Quote, Profile, Research) released in March was "extremely similar" in design to a
DoCoMo handset made by Fujitsu Ltd (6702.T: Quote, Profile, Research) and first sold in
2006. [ID:nT290295]

-- Sony Corp (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Sony plans to commercialise a new anti-glare technology as
early as 2010 to make films for use in screens for mobile phones,
notebook computers, flat-panel TVs and other digital devices, the
Nikkei business daily reported on Tuesday.

The new technology draws from manufacturing technology for
its Blu-ray DVD discs to make a film covered with tiny bumps and
able to cut screen glare to about 1/30 that of conventional
liquid crystal display (LCD) films, the Nikkei said.

-- Elpida Memory Inc (6665.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Elpida said on Monday it would cooperate with Taiwan's United
Microelectronics Corp (UMC) (2303.TW: Quote, Profile, Research) in a contract chip-making
business as some microchip makers are pulling away from heavy
capital investments required for semiconductor manufacturing.
[ID:nT65932]

-- NTT Data Corp (9613.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

NTT Data, Japan's largest systems consultant, slashed its
annual outlook on Monday by 45 percent after it transferred
employees to other Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp (9432.T: Quote, Profile, Research)
firms, denting parent NTT's outlook by 5 percent. [ID:nT286980]

-- Ezaki Glico Co (2206.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

U.S. hedge fund Steel Partners said on Monday it had proposed
steps to confectioner Ezaki Glico to boost its corporate value,
including appointing an independent board member and raising
dividend payments. [ID:nT293524]

-- Orix Corp (8591.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Leasing giant Orix Corp said on Monday it would buy back up
to 30 billion yen ($308.4 million) of its own shares, or 2
percent of outstanding shares, between March 17 and April 30.

-- Takefuji Corp (8564.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Takefuji on Monday cut its net profit outlook by 69 percent
for the year ending March 31, hit by a special loss of 29.7
billion yen on a structured finance deal arranged by Merrill
Lynch & Co MER.N. [ID:nT274639]

-- Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd (6302.T: Quote, Profile, Research)

Chip equipment maker Axcelis Technologies (ACLS.O: Quote, Profile, Research) on Monday
rejected a sweetened $615.6 million takeover bid by Sumitomo
Heavy, saying it undervalued the company and failed to compensate
it for the future potential of new products. ID:nN17450764]
(Reporting by Elaine Lies, Editing by Michael Watson)