Japan

Skandia has urged investors against panic selling Japanese holdings in the wake of the country's devastating earthquake.

Chris Taylor, manager of the Neptune Japan Opportunities fund, has warned Japan may face downgrades to its credit rating and see its currency weaken after last week's earthquake.

UK blue chips made small gains in early trading after heavily sold-off Japanese shares ended a three-day rout to climb sharply overnight.

Rathbones' David Coombs is adding Japanese stocks to his portfolio in the view its economy will rebound quickly from the aftermath of last week's devastating earthquake and tsunami.

Jupiter's John Chatfeild-Roberts upped exposure to Japan in his £6bn Merlin multi-manager range in February with the addition of the GLG Japan CoreAlpha fund.

Global insurance company share prices tumbled last night as concerns mounted about the cost of rebuilding Japan following Friday's earthquake and the resulting tsunami.

The creator of an online donation tool to help people suffering the effects of the Japanese earthquake is urging the financial services industry to help the cause.

Nomura predicts the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan will cut between 0.5% and 1% off the country's GDP next quarter.

Fund managers warn Japan could take a short term hit to GDP following last week's earthquake and tsunami, but they are less concerned about the longer-term impact on the country's fragile economic recovery.

Japan's stock market lost almost 7% after its first full day of trading following the earthquake and tsunami that struck the country on Friday.