Japanese stocks have risen on news that US orders for durable goods rose in April. This from Bloomberg:

Sony Corp., which gets a quarter of its sales from the U.S., sent electronics makers higher, while Canon Inc. jumped the most in a month. Mazda Motor Corp., which exports 80 percent of domestic production, led a gain by carmakers after the yen weakened against the dollar.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 415.03, or 3 percent, to close at 14,124.47, the sharpest gain since April 2. The broader Topix index jumped 31.94, or 2.4 percent, to 1,380.63. All but one of 33 industry groups on the index advanced.

“For investors, one of the biggest profit opportunities will be with companies that are helping China build out its infrastructure and build up its consumer sector,” says Keith Fitzgerald in Money Morning, “which is why such companies as solar-ceramics maker Kyocera Corp. (ADR: KYO), and trading giant and independent power plant developer Mitsui & Co. Ltd. (ADR: MITSY), are logical choices.

“In addition to seeing Japanese companies like these focusing their sights on the China market, we’re likely to see Chinese companies doing the same with Japan. While it’s not yet clear who those companies will be, it is clear to us that the initial entrée will likely be from one or more of China’s sovereign wealth funds.

“Our best guess is that China investors will prefer key targets like those traded on the Tokyo Stock Exchange – especially companies that have an expertise in environmental protection and energy-saving technologies. We also think China will make a run at construction companies with experience in large-scale infrastructure and national-building projects – all of which are in exceptionally high demand in China.”

“Economically, China and Japan have much to offer each other,” says Martin Hutchinson in Money Morning.

“Both have shortages of raw materials and strong manufacturing sectors. However, the relative shortage of labor in Japan’s aging society, its superb education system and the surplus of labor in China all combine to make them natural partners. Already, Japan is China’s second-largest trading partner, taking 10% of its exports and supplying 15% of its imports. Conversely, China in 2007 surpassed the United States as Japan’s largest trading partner, taking 14% of its exports and supplying 21% of its imports.”