Output rose 3 per cent in June from the previous month, according to preliminary figures."If the IP figure is higher than expected, it could pressure bonds lower," said an analyst.. Many traders were expecting the number to be adjusted lower, as the original estimate, released two months ago, surpassed economists' forecast of a 0.1 per cent expansion.Japanese bonds are likely to fall this week as further signs of economic recovery may increase expectations that the central bank will allow overnight interest rates to rise earlier than previously thought.Tomorrow, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry will release revised figures on industrial production for June. If the numbers are strong, concern that the Federal Reserve Bank will raise interest rates when it meets on 24 August will keep investors away from exporters whose earnings will be hurt by weaker consumer demand.Canon, Japan's largest maker of office equipment, exports 83 per cent of its products, while Sony, Japan's second-largest consumer electronics company, exports 68 per cent of its goods.Investors may also get a cue to sell exporters from the currency market, where the yen could rise further amid signs Japan's economy is getting back on track.Figures released in Tokyo on Friday indicated that Japan's economy expanded a revised 2 per cent in the January-March quarter, up from an initial estimate of 1.9 per cent. "Yet, with many investors away on vacation, I expect the downside risk to be limited."Last week, the Nikkei 225 index rose 350.93, or 2 per cent, to 17,435.17 points, rebounding from the worst week this year, when it fell 4.3 per cent between 2 August and 6 August. The Topix index fell 21.81, or 1.5 per cent, to 1,442.49 points.Investors will watch for signs of inflation in the US when the July consumer price index is released on Tuesday.

Canon and Sony may also come under pressure from the currency market, where the yen rose against the dollar on Friday following the government's unexpected revision higher of first-quarter gross domestic product figures. "Concern about the currency and Wall Street will still weigh on the market," said Toshio Tahara, a general fund manager at Sumisei Global Investment Trust Management Co. Japanese Stocks may fall this week, led by exporters, amid concern that a possible rise in US interest rates may hurt consumer sentiment. The insurance company has joined the small but growing band of fund managers and investment houses offering individual savings accounts (ISAs) over the net.Scottish Widows' first online ISA is a UK index tracker that meets the Government's CAT mark for charges. Investors with a debit card can take out an ISA online without the need for a written application or signature.Scottish Widows, www.scottishwidows.co.ukStephen Pritchard can be contacted at: Hi-tech-investor dial.pipex . The Halifax also plans to launch internet stockbroking next month..James Brearley & Sons, www.jbrearley.co.uk; DLJ, www.dljdirect ; Halifax, www.halifax.co.ukWidows' ISAINTERNET investors who prefer an index tracking fund to selecting their own shares should visit the Scottish Widows website.

The US discount broker DLJ Direct is widely tipped to launch a UK internet service. The interface itself is a little cluttered, with several windows displaying data.James Brearley will soon add a portfolio monitoring service to Icon as well as administrative support, including dividend statements and capital gains tax calculations.Some investors will take comfort from the fact that firms such as James Brearley are established stockbrokers who have been in the business for many years.The next few weeks will see even stiffer competition for the traditional broking houses. The site has some nice touches, such as a visual countdown bar that shows how long a quoted price is valid. For larger transactions, E*Trade's fee rises to pounds 24.95, but it falls back to pounds 14.95 for frequent traders. On this basis, Icon could be an attractive option for investors who buy or sell larger numbers of shares less often. James Brearley's site was developed with Interactive Markets, a subsidiary of the Interactive Investor website.

This compares with a minimum fee of pounds 14.95 from E*Trade on deals up to pounds 1,500. Icon does not offer the cheapest dealing services but its pricing structure is simple and it can work out better value James Brearley charges a flat fee of pounds 20 per trade. James Brearley's service, Icon, is not being backed by anything like the marketing muscle deployed by US newcomer E*Trade, but in many ways the services are equals. Queue-lovers should head for Bristol & West, which has just launched a top-paying account as a branch service. The Easy Life account pays 5.65 per cent, though there are a few restrictions: the minimum transaction is pounds 100 and savers are restricted to six withdrawals a year.Paul Vinnicombe, savings manager at Bristol & West, points to research that suggests 90 per cent of people prefer dealing with their finances in a branch rather than over the phone or the net..

LONG-ESTABLISHED British stockbrokers are trying to see off the American threat with their own real-time, online sharedealing services. But if you like the personal touch it is hard to find branch-based accounts paying decent interest rates.Nationwide, for example, offers only 2.5 per cent gross on pounds 500 in its Cash Builder account in branches, while the InvestDirect post and net account pays 5 per cent on pounds 500. This makes it easier to keep spare cash in a deposit account, where it will earn at least some interest, and move it to a current account when it is needed.In the next few months, more banks and building societies will open up their postal or phone accounts to savers who prefer to manage their money on line. Nationwide has just relaunched its online banking service, and it now includes access to savings accounts previously only available by post and phone.Contacts: Bristol & West, www.bristol-west.co.uk or 0117 979 2222; Egg, www.egg ; First-e, www.first-e ; Halifax, www.halifax.co.uk; Nationwide, www.nationwide.co.uk; Norwich and Peterborough, www.npbs.co.uk; Standard Life, www.standardlife.co.ukACCOUNTS FOR TECHNOPHOBESNot everyone has access to the internet, and not everyone wants to run their finances by post and phone.