Japan shares mixed on Eurozone debt woes, bargain hunting

Japanese stocks were mixed Monday as investors worried about the Eurozone debt crisis but some were put into a buying mood by bargains after a 3-per-cent plunge in the previous trading session. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 22.58 points, or 0.26 per cent, to end at 8,633.89 while the broader Topix index was down 0.39 points, or 0.05 per cent, at 725.15. On Friday, the Nikkei lost 2.99 per cent and the Topix 2.89 per cent. The yen's rise against the dollar also weighed on market sentiment Monday as the Japanese currency was standing at the lower-79-yen range to the greenback. A stronger yen makes Japanese goods more expensive abroad and hurts repatriated revenues. On currency markets ,the dollar traded at 79.24-25 yen, down from Friday's 5 pm quote of 79.28-30 yen. The euro was quoted at 101.34-35 yen, up from 100.46-50 yen late Friday, and at 1.2786-2787 dollars, up from 1.2673-2674 dollars.