Tokyo - Honda Motor Co said Friday that its net profit increased 8.1 per cent in its first quarter to 179.61 billion yen (1.67 billion dollars), thanks to strong sales in Asia and Brazil.

Japan's second-largest automaker reported a 2.2-per-cent decline in sales in the April-June quarter to 2.87 trillion yen.

Its operating profit, or a company's earnings minus interest payments and taxes, which are seen as a measure of its earnings power from ongoing operations, fell 0.2 per cent to 221.35 billion yen.

Tokyo - Japan's core consumer price index (CPI) rose 1.9 per cent in June from a year before, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry said Friday.

Tokyo (dpa) - Tokyo stocks opened lower Friday as investors locked in profits from the previous day's gains.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 209.5 points, or 1.54 per cent, to 13,393.81.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues also down 26.62 points, or 2 per cent, to 1,305.95.

On currency markets at 9 am (0000 GMT), the dollar was quoted at 107.28-33 yen, down from Thursday's 5 pm quote of 107.82-84 yen.

Tokyo  - Canon Inc on Thursday reported a 15.9-per-cent fall in its net profit during the first half of the year as a stronger yen and higher material costs offset robust sales of digital cameras and copiers.

Net profit fell, for the first time in six years to 214.49 billion yen (2.02 billion dollars) from the same period last year.

Operating profits - or a company's earnings minus interest payments and taxes, which are seen as a measure of its earnings power from ongoing operations - declined
14.9 per cent to 331 billion yen, Canon said.

Tokyo, July 24 : A strong earthquake jolted northern Japan early on Thursday.

Agency reports said that several people were injured and that three cars had been buried under a landslide, and that electric power had been cut off to at least 10,000 homes.

The Japan Meteorological Agency, however, said there was no threat of a tsunami from the quake, which had a preliminary magnitude of 6.8 and could be felt as far away as Tokyo.

Tokyo - Japan's trade surplus shrank 42.1 per cent in the first six months of fiscal 2008 to 3 trillion yen (27.51 billion dollars) from a year earlier, the Finance Ministry said Thursday.

The surplus marked the largest fall since the first half of 2001.

Due to rising oil prices, imports grew faster than exports, the ministry said.

Exports grew 3.9 per cent to 41.93 trillion yen on expansion in automobile shipments to Russia and the Middle East, and imports soared 10.5 per cent to a record 38.97 trillion yen, buoyed by double-digit gains in crude oil, liquefied natural gas and coal imports.

Japan's trade surplus with the United States shrank 17.2 per cent to 3.4 trillion yen.