TOKYO (Reuters) – The Tokyo Stock Exchange is in final talks to keep the scandal-hit Olympus Corp listed on the bourse, Jiji News Agency reported on Monday.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange kept Olympus on its watchlist after the firm met its deadline to file its revised results on December 14, which revealed a $1.1 billion dent in its balance sheet.

A source close to the matter told Reuters on Sunday that Olympus is considering suing current and former executives for compensation totaling about 90 billion yen ($1.2 billion), while its new president is considering resigning.

(Reporting By Mari Saito; Editing by Ed Lane)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. investors came to the Thanksgiving holiday table on Thursday mostly thankful that the week was a short one, or losses could have been larger.

As another round of news and bond auctions from Europe begins next week, traders will watch closely sovereign bond yields that have kept markets on edge.

Yields rose in almost every euro-zone country this week, and Germany failed to find enough bids for a 10-year auction. The S&P 500 reacted by posting a second straight week of declines and its worst week in two months.

Politicians are scrambling to find a way out of a two-year-old sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone and a visit to Washington from top European Union officials, as well as a meeting of euro-zone finance ministers, will provide the market with headlines and possibly add to uncertainty.

With the specter of rising yields, France, Britain, Italy, Belgium and Spain are holding debt sales next week. The direction of bond yields will determine the direction of equity markets.

"Politicians are trying to buy themselves time so austerity measures kick in and impact budgets and deficits and markets become more forgiving and rates come down," said Wasif Latif, vice president of equity investments at the San Antonio, Texas-based USAA Investment Management, which manages about $45 billion.

"The credit market and fixed income are a little bit more in the eye of storm; that's where the issue is rising, so equities are more reactionary," he said. "You may continue to see more of the same."

Investors have worried about rising borrowing costs in many euro-zone nations, but Italy, the third-largest euro zone economy, has grabbed most of the focus. On Friday Rome paid a record 6.5 percent to borrow for six months and almost 8 percent to issue two-year zero coupon bonds.

Many market participants have said that the sharply differentiated risk-on and -off trades that the euro zone crisis has generated has seen equities being sold as an asset class, with little or no difference between strong and week balance sheets and earnings reports. But a wedge has opened at least from a global perspective, as data show stocks of companies with more exposure to Europe are underperforming.

POLITICS TO DRIVE THE WEEK

President Barack Obama will meet on Monday with European Council President Herman van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, and Europe's response to the two-year sovereign debt crisis is expected to top the agenda.

"The only thing that will come out of that is speculation," said Todd Salamone, vice president of research at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati, referring to the meeting in Washington.

"It will come down to the U.S. trying to convince European leaders to get something in place to solve this crisis."

Not many hopes are set either on Tuesday's meeting where euro-zone finance ministers are expected to agree on how to further strengthen the region's bailout fund.

On Thursday, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi presents the bank's annual report to the European parliament.

As the latest reminder from markets to politicians that they are running out of time, Belgium's credit rating was downgraded by Standard & Poor's.

IF EUROPE ALLOWS, DATA WILL BE KEY

Some of the most important U.S. economic monthly data will be released next week, but will it be enough to unlink the stock market's behavior and European yields.

New home sales and the S&P/Case-Shiller home prices index will start the week showing if the housing market continues on life support. Data on confidence among consumers, who flooded U.S. stores on Friday as the holiday shopping season started, will be released on Tuesday.

The Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing report is due, with investors not only looking at the U.S. number on Wednesday but also factory readings from Europe and China on Thursday.

By midweek labor data takes over with the private sector employment report from ADP and Challenger's job cuts report, followed Thursday by the weekly jobless claims numbers and topped by Friday's monthly non-farm payrolls report.

"It would be a little bit refreshing to focus on the U.S. data for a change," said Brian Lazorishak, senior quantitative analyst and portfolio manager at Chase Investment Counsel in Charlottesville, Virginia.

He said if European headlines allow it, the focus will be in the labor market where "most people are looking for modest improvement."

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; additional reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Kenneth Barry)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The stalemate in debt talks dragged down stocks for a second day on Tuesday, and light volume showed investors remained reluctant to make bets despite another round of healthy earnings.

Based on the latest available data, the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 90.37 points, or 0.72 percent, to unofficially close at 12,502.43. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (.SPX) was down 5.38 points, or 0.40 percent, at 1,332.05. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) was down 2.84 points, or 0.10 percent, at 2,839.96.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Editing by Leslie Adler)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The Dow and S&P 500 rose on Friday after France and Germany outlined an agreement to aid debt-burdened Greece, but analysts said a recent bearish trend may not be over.

The Dow managed to close just above 12,000, but the S&P 500 barely squeaked out a gain for the week after six straight weeks of losses. The uncertainty surrounding a resolution of the debt crisis kept investors wary of committing more cash to equities.

Research In Motion Ltd’s (RIMM.O) U.S.-listed shares sank 21.5 percent to $27.75 in its busiest day of trading in almost six years. The BlackBerry maker’s sour results, released late Thursday, pushed the Nasdaq lower and dragged on other top technology names such as Apple Inc (AAPL.O), down 1.5 percent at $320.26.

France and Germany said they would ask banks holding Greek debt to voluntarily shoulder some of the burden. Meanwhile, Greece’s prime minister appointed a new finance minister to try to push through harsh economic reforms.

The debt crisis escalated this week as Moody’s Investors Service said it may cut the credit ratings of French banks, citing exposure to Greek debt. Late Friday, Moody’s said it was reviewing Italy’s sovereign credit ratings for a possible downgrade.

“The question now in many people’s minds is whether or not a credit event in Europe, the ripple effect, will be strong enough to put the U.S. economy in a recession. I honestly don’t see that,” said Natalie Trunow, chief investment officer of equities of Calvert Investment Management in Bethesda, Maryland, which manages about $14.8 billion.

But, she said, “people are finally starting to connect the dots between the sovereign debt crisis and the potential impact on some of the larger companies involved in those countries and some of the banks.”

The S&P financial index (.GSPF) was up 0.9 percent for the day, but is down about 7 percent since the start of the year. The KBW Bank Index (.BKX) rose 1.1 percent on Friday.

The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) rose 42.84 points, or 0.36 percent, to end at 12,004.36. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (.SPX) gained 3.86 points, or 0.30 percent, to 1,271.50. But the Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) fell 7.22 points, or 0.28 percent, to 2,616.48.

READING THE BEARS’ LIPS

Both the Dow and the S&P 500 finished the week with gains and broke a six-week string of losses: The Dow was up 0.4 percent for the week, while the S&P 500 was up just 0.04 percent.

But the Nasdaq lost 1 percent for the week.

For the year, the Nasdaq is down 1.4 percent.

In contrast, the Dow is up 3.7 percent for the year and the S&P 500 is up 1.1 percent.

Friday’s volume was slightly better than average, as activity picked up amid options expiration.

But bearish signals for the market abound, including in equity-only put-call ratios, according to Larry McMillan, president of McMillan Analysis Corp. in Morristown, New Jersey.

Recent gains in the CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX) also show investors are skittish.

“All of the intermediate-term indicators are on ‘sell’ signals,” he said.

The S&P 500 is roughly 7 percent below a three-year high hit in early May, and many strategists see a test of 1,250 on the index as likely.

Economic data was mixed, with the index of leading economic indicators rising more than forecast in May to a record high, but U.S. consumer sentiment for June was weaker than expected.

“Most of the more important reports (this week) indicated the world is not coming to an end, contrary to popular belief,” said Charles Lieberman, chief investment officer of Advisers Capital Management, LLC in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.

Shares of Marvell Technology Group Ltd (MRVL.O) slid 4.2 percent to $13.21, following Research In Motion’s dismal report and sharply reduced forecast after Thursday’s closing bell.

The day’s volume was active, with about 8.29 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Amex and Nasdaq, above the daily average of 7.58 billion.

Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by about 3 to 2. On the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners by nearly 14 to 13.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Additional reporting by Doris Frankel; Editing by Jan Paschal)

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The devastation in Japan is set to worsen the negative short-term sentiment gripping a vulnerable U.S. stock market, with companies exposed to Japan and the nuclear energy sector likely to take the biggest hits.

The disaster brought on a flurry of short bets against Japanese stocks on Friday, and that trend could well accelerate on news of deteriorating conditions in Japan over the weekend.

The massive earthquake and tsunami are now estimated to have killed 10,000 people and left officials scrambling to avoid meltdowns at three nuclear reactors.

U.S. investors are likely to further their bearish positions in options on the iShares MSCI Japan Fund (EWJ.P) as well as buys of the ProShares UltraShort MSCI Japan (EWV.P).

The EWV exchange-traded fund aims to return to the investor double the opposite of whatever the MSCI Japan does, so when the index rises 1 percent the ProShares should go down 2 percent. Volume in that ETF hit a record on Friday.

The effects on the broad U.S. market are harder to determine. The S&P 500 fell below its 50-day moving average last week and support appears to be waning, despite a rally on Friday.

Investors are likely to focus on the ramifications for energy companies, particularly nuclear power. Japanese officials said there may have been a partial meltdown at the No. 1 reactor of a nuclear plant in Fukushima.

“The disaster could prove to be a setback for nuclear power as an alternative energy source,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago. “Whether or not we see a reaction in utilities and engineering and construction companies remains to be seen.”

The Van Eck Market Vectors Uranium and Nuclear Energy exchange-traded fund (NLR.P) hit a 52-week high on February 8, rising 7 percent in the two weeks after President Barack Obama proposed additional funds for nuclear power.

Among the NLR’s top components that could get hit on Monday are big uranium mining names including Cameco Corp (CCJ.N)(CCO.TO) and Uranium One Inc (UUU.TO). Both are also among the top components in the Global X Uranium ETF (URA.P).

Nuclear-powered countries may reexamine expansion efforts or expend more on safety and security at plants. It may impact the two biggest nuclear operators in the United States, Exelon Corp (EXC.N) and Entergy Corp (ETR.N) as they could face a renewed push for more regulation.

Obama has been a supporter of an expanded nuclear energy program, but that will be called into question now. In February, the White House asked for $36 billion in federal loan guarantees to help finance the building of nuclear power plants.

“Nuclear loses in the near term. Conventional oil, natural gas, and coal are the winners,” David Kotok, chief investment officer at Cumberland Advisors in Sarasota, Florida, wrote in a Sunday commentary.

That may hurt shares of Edison International (EIX.N) and PG&E Corp (PCG.N), which operate nuclear power plants on the earthquake-prone California coast.

U.S.-listed shares of Japanese companies will trade lower in line with their Japan counterparts, including auto manufacturers Toyota Motor Co (TM.N) and Honda Motor Co (HMC.N), which have shut all domestic auto factories.

Major insurers and reinsurers with exposure to the Japanese market were hit on Friday and could weaken further, including American International Group (AIG.N) and ACE Ltd (ACE.N).

MIDDLE EAST STILL WEIGHS; FED AWAITED

Investors are also still grappling with political protests in the world’s top oil exporter, Saudi Arabia.

The market’s recent weakness revived talk a correction is near, analysts said, even though stocks recovered from early losses on Friday to finish the day higher with the Dow back above 12,000 and the S&P 500 above 1,300.

Stocks have rallied sharply since the start of September, with the S&P 500 up 24 percent for that period, but faltered in the last two weeks. At Friday’s close, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (.SPX) was down 1.3 percent for the week.

The jump in crude oil prices to 2-1/2-year highs has raised anxiety about their dampening effect on the economy.

Given those concerns, investors will be tuned into any comments on energy from the Federal Reserve when it releases a statement on Tuesday afternoon following its policy meeting.

The U.S. central bank is unlikely to hint at policy changes this week, and is expected to keep interest rates near zero.

For the week, the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 1 percent, the S&P 500 slid 1.3 percent and the Nasdaq (.IXIC) lost 2.5 percent.

Besides a break below the 50-day moving average earlier this week, the S&P 500 fell below a long-standing trendline, suggesting the benchmark index has lost momentum and that the recent rally may be losing steam.

“That behavior tells you demand has weakened, which puts odds on further downside in the near term,” said Chris Burba, short-term market technician at Standard & Poor’s in New York.

If the S&P 500 falls below 1,275, the next support area is 1,227 to 1,177, he said.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; Additional reporting by Doris Frankel in Chicago, David Gaffen in New York, and Julie Gordon in Toronto; Editing by Dale Hudson and Jan Paschal)