Nikkei up 1 pct on reports of Greece aid plan, yen
* Reports of Greek aid plan reassure on global economy
* Machinery orders up 20.1 pct, but market neutral-analyst
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO, Feb 10 - Japan's Nikkei stock average rose 1 percent on Wednesday after reports of an aid plan for heavily indebted Greece eased worries about global economic stability, while a weaker yen buoyed exporters such as Canon Inc <7751.T>.
Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> edged up, with some market players saying its share price may have bottomed and despite the new recall of Camry sedans for steering problems, but Honda Motor Co <7267.T> fell after expanding a U.S. recall [ID:nSGE61800X].
A senior German ruling coalition source said euro zone governments have decided in principle to help Greece, calming investors after risk aversion increased in the past two weeks on concern about the fiscal stability of Greece, Portugal and Spain. [ID:nSGE61801C]
"Certainly there are reports about support for Greece, but nothing concrete's been decided. So while downward pressure has definitely decreased, there's still no real reason to buy," said Hideyuki Ishiguro, a strategist at Okasan Securities.
Japan's core machinery orders rose more than expected in December from the previous month, easing concern that capital spending may continue to slump and shackle the economy's fragile recovery, but this was seen as largely neutral for the market. [ID:nTOE61708J]
"The machinery orders data is extremely volatile -- the month before this orders really plunged. So while today's figures aren't bad for the market, it's hard to say that this recovery will go on and so few investors really want to buy on this," said Ishiguro.
The benchmark Nikkei <.N225> gained 104.42 points to 10,039.59, while the broader Topix <.TOPX> rose 0.9 percent to 889.84.
Market players said that investors, including commodity trading advisors appeared eager to sell a bit above 10,000, and that this would limit gains.
TOYOTA GAINS, HONDA FALLS
In the latest blow to its reputation, Toyota said in a document sent to U.S. dealers and obtained by Reuters that 2010 Camrys equipped with a 4-cylinder engine might have a shorter-than-required power steering pressure hose in the engine compartment [ID:nN09109575].
Toyota shares rose 0.6 percent to 3,395 yen after briefly dipping into negative territory.
"Judging from past recalls, it may take as much as half a year before things settle down," said Nagayuki Yamagishi, a strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.
"While Toyota shares have probably bottomed out already, it still may be early for a sustained rebound."
Honda edged down 0.2 percent to 3,055 yen after saying it is recalling 378,758 vehicles in the United States to fix an airbag defect linked to 11 injuries and one fatality. [ID:nN09120875]
But shares of Nissan Motor <7201.T> climbed 2.5 percent to 749 yen after Japan's third-largest automaker said it returned to quarterly profit and lifted its forecast for the second time, though warning of a still shaky outlook for the global car market. [ID:nTOE61706Y]
Toshiba Corp <6502.T>, Japan's biggest chipmaker, advanced 3.1 percent to 432 yen after the Nikkei business daily said it will spend about 800 billion yen to build a flash memory chip factory, reviving plans that had been put on hold due to sharp falls in demand. [ID:nTOE61808M]
The dollar edged up 0.2 percent to 89.81 yen <JPY=>, while the euro rose 0.3 percent to 123.99 yen <EURJPY=R>. Investors fret about a stronger yen because it eats into exporter profits when repatriated.
Sony Corp <6758.T> rose 2.5 percent to 3,065 yen and Canon gained 1.6 percent to 3,570 yen. Tokyo Electron <8035.T> rose 2.6 percent to 5,480 yen.
Core private-sector machinery orders, a highly volatile series regarded as an indicator of capital spending, rose 20.1 percent, above a median market forecast of a 8.0 percent gain. [JPMORD=ECI] <ECONJP>