Tokyo  - The Japanese government on Tuesday urged its citizens to postpone trips to Mexico and those who live there to return at an early date.

Prime Minister Taro Aso has set up a task force Tuesday morning and raised the alert level after the World Health Organization (WHO) upgraded the pandemic alert level to phase 4, following a swine flu outbreak in Mexico which may have caused as many as 149 deaths so far.

Phase 4 means that there is sustained human-to-human transmission of the virus in at least one country, according to the WHO.

Tokyo  - Tokyo stocks ended Tuesday morning trading slightly higher on pharmaceutical issues as the swine influenza spreads to ever more countries.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average inched up 38.51 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 8,764.85.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was also up 0.99 points, or 0.12 per cent, at 834.09.

Stocks opened lower Tuesday after overnight retreats in the US market and a stronger yen.

Tokyo - Sharp Corp incurred a net loss for fiscal 2008 after the company introduced inventory control, cost-reduction measures and structural reforms, it said Monday. The Japanese electronics company reported a net loss of 125.82 billion yen (1.3 billion dollars) the fiscal year that ended March 31, a reversal from the profit of 101.92 billion yen the previous fiscal year.

Tokyo - Japanese electronics companies Renesas Technology and NEC Electronics have agreed to merge their business operations by April 2010 to become the nation's largest semiconductor maker and the world's third-largest chipmaker, the companies announced Monday. The move was designed to ensure the companies' survival during the global downturn. They are expected to sign the deal in July.

Renesas, a joint venture between Hitachi Ltd and Mitsubishi Electric, is the country's second-largest chipmaker after market leader Toshiba.

Tokyo - The Tokyo market closed modestly higher Monday after optimism was dampened by concerns over the spread of swine flu. The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 18.35 points, or 0.21 per cent, to close at 8,726.34.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues was also up 3.05 points, or 0.38 per cent, at 833.1.

Market sentiment was boosted in morning trading after Wall Street advanced before the weekend thanks to US carmaker Ford Motor Co reported better-than-expected earnings.

Tokyo  - The Japanese government on Monday announced the steepest-ever downward projection of the nation's economic growth as the world's second-largest economy suffers its worst recession in postwar history.

The Cabinet Office said the nation's economy would contract 3.3 per cent for the current fiscal year that began April 1, revising downward from zero growth it predicted in December.