ng around25,600 people dead or missing and cutting power to millions ofhomes as well as factories
women sandals clearance, many of which are still strugglingto come back online.
The estimated $300 billion in damage makes it the costliestnatural disaster in history, and Japan is still grappling withthe worst nuclear crisis since Chernobyl after the quake andtsunami crippled a power plant 240 km (150 miles) north ofTokyo.
"We are unlikely to see further gains in the near future
Wholesale NHL Jerseys ,unless there's an end to the nuclear crisis in sight
Wholesale NHL Jerseys ," saidTakashi Hiroki, chief strategist at Monex Securities.
Disruptions in the global supply chain after the Japan quakecontinue to be felt around the world, most notably for automakers and electronics firms. Toyota Motor saidovernight it will slow some North American production because ofparts shortages.
MSCI's measure of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.9 percent, with Australia'sresources-heavy index gaining 1 percent after a rally inprices of base metals such as copper the previous day.
Gains for materials shares lifted Wall Street on Wednesday
Wholesale NHL Jerseys ,with the Dow Jones industrial average rising 0.6 percentand the broader S&P 500 gaining 0.3 percent.
DEBT CRISIS
The political upheaval in Portugal
Wholesale NHL Jerseys , along with loomingelections elsewhere, was expected to deter European leaders fromtaking tough decisions to address the region's sovereign debtcrisis when they meet at a summit this week.
They are unlikely to come up with a plan to strengthen theeuro zone's bailout fund until June, which may also underminethe single currency.
"If the EU leaders fail to come up with measures to enhancethe safety net that markets have wanted in their summit meeting,the euro could face further pressure down the road," said SuminoKamei, senior currency analyst at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The euro bought around $1.4085 , having dropped as faras $1.4075 on electronic trading platform EBS in late New Yorktrade on Wednesday.
The yen sat near 81 per dollar, a level it has huggedtightly in recent days with markets still wary of furthercentral bank intervention to curb the Japanese currency if itstrengthens past 80.50.
Leading central banks launched the first coordinated marketintervention in more than a decade last week to reverse a runthat had seen the yen hit a record 76.25 on expectations Japan-- a net creditor to the rest of the world -- would see a waveof funds being repatriated to pay for earthquake reconstruction.
Japanese government bonds rose, with benchmark 10-yearfutures up 0.19 point, while the 10-year yield eased1.5 basis points to 1.2 percent.
Oil eased as the euro zone concerns rekindled worries abouteconomic growth -- and hence energy demand -- in the bloc,although traders said continued political unrest in parts of theMiddle East would prevent it from falling far.
U.S. crude fell 0.3 percent to $105.48 a barrel andBrent crude was off 0.2 percent at $115.35.
Spot gold traded around $1,437.90 an o
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