Toshiba applies for return to TSE's first section

The logo of Toshiba Corp is seen behind cherry blossoms at the company's headquarters in Tokyo

TOKYO (Reuters) - Toshiba Corp <6502.T> said on Friday it filed an application to return to the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section.

The Japanese company was relegated to the second section in 2017 after massive writedowns at its U.S. nuclear power business caused liabilities to exceed assets - a condition for automatic demotion.

The company would have needed at least five consecutive years of audited financial reporting to return to the first section under the Tokyo bourse's previous rules, but that requirement was reduced to two years this year.

(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Chris Gallagher and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)