Tokyo - Japanese water-system company Wellthy was expected to start providing drinking water to Chinese earthquake victims as early as this week, becoming one of the few private Japanese companies to offer relief services in China.

Wellthy completed the set-up of the well-water filtering system on Tuesday for about 1,500 people living in a temporary shelter camp in Miyanyang, about 150 kilometres north-east of Chengdu, to provide drinking water to 60,000 people displaced in a magnitude-8 quake.

The May 12 quake killed 70,000 people, left nearly 17,000 missing and 15 million homeless in and around China's Sichuan province.

Tokyo  - Stocks opened higher in Tokyo Tuesday as investors bought financial and banking issues amid eased credit concerns.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average increased 165.31 points, or 1.29 per cent, to 12,969.01.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was also up 11.35 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 1,263.78.

On currency markets at 9 am (0000 GMT), the dollar was quoted at 106.50-55 yen, up from Monday's 5 pm quote of 106.38-48 yen in New York. Japanese financial markets were closed Monday for a national holiday.

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Tokyo - Tokyo stocks opened low