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Asia resists Wall Street slide
By Alex Frew McMillan
HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Asian stocks are largely shaking off overnight weakness from Wall Street, with Japan trading up and only minor losses for most other markets. The Nikkei average ended the morning up 1.06 percent to 8,574.42, while the broader Topix is up 1.23 percent to 854.63. The indexes were split on Tuesday but are marching ahead a day later as telecoms lock in a second day of advances. South Korea is also in the black, but only just. There are slight declines in Singapore and Malaysia, and Hong Kong is off half a percent. Australia and New Zealand are seeing the heaviest selling, both down around 1 percent. Investors are waiting for guidance on the United States course of action with Iraq when Secretary of State Colin Powell addresses the United Nations on Wednesday in New York. Wall Street fell on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones industrial average down 1.19 percent to 8,013.29 and Nasdaq off 1.33 percent to 1,306.15. (U.S. roundup) After the close, Cisco Systems beat forecasts by a penny but offered a cloudy forecast. Cell-phone plays up in TokyoIn Tokyo, cell-phone stocks are enjoying more gains, with KDDI up 2.77 percent to 371,000 yen.
Japan's No. 2 cell-phone service on Tuesday posted strong earnings for the December quarter. (Full story) That is also driving industry leader NTT DoCoMo higher, Tokyo's largest listing up 3.85 percent to 243,000 yen at noon. Japan Telecom shares are soaring 6.89 percent to 388,000 yen on a report that Vodafone is considering selling its majority stake in the company. (Full story) There are also advances for bank Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, up 2.08 percent to 392,000 yen, a day after a report that it will recapitalize by issuing preferred stock. Yen hitting exportersThe yen is trading a little stronger at 119.51, after weakening significantly on Monday. But experts say the dollar's gains will not hold. "With the war with Iraq approaching inexorably, any dollar rally will only provide better selling opportunities," Global Forex Trading analyst Cornelius Luca stated. Yen gains are driving exporters lower, with Sony Corp. off 1.69 percent to 4,660 yen and Toyota Motor down 0.17 percent to 2,970 yen. Luca did not rule out the Bank of Japan intervening again, either covertly or overtly, to weaken the yen. Hong Kong off on U.S. lagIn Hong Kong, the Hang Seng is down 0.52 percent to 9,204.29 in late morning trade, largely in response to the U.S. selling.
Bank stock HSBC is surrendering all of Tuesday's gains, down 0.60 percent to HK$82.25. Airline Cathay Pacific, which would suffer higher fuel prices from war in the Persian Gulf, is down 1.32 percent to HK$11.25. Hongkong and China Gas is one of the few gainers, up 0.52 percent to HK$9.75, as investors look for safety in defensive plays like utilities. Oil producer CNOOC is driving ahead 1.97 percent to HK$10.35 as oil prices continue to rise. Sydney near four-month lowsIn Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 index is down 1.0 percent at 2,917.0 in early afternoon, moving toward four-month lows. News Corp. is down 2.6 percent to A$11.01, its lowest level since November, after Wall Street's fall.
Magnate Rupert Murdoch confirmed he is expecting his sixth child, his second with Wendi Deng. (Full story) Most big caps are lower, with miner BHP Billiton down 0.44 percent to A$9.08, with telecom stock Telstra off 0.45 percent to A$4.44. Gold stocks are higher, though, as investors bid bullion up to seven-year highs of $380 an ounce. Placer Dome is topping the gains with a 3.19 percent advance to A$19.76. New Zealand's Top 40 closed down 1.34 percent to 1,958.74, matching Wall Street's fall. Telecom New Zealand gave up 1.10 percent to A$4.48. Retailer The Warehouse plummeted 12.53 percent to NZ$6.20 after the company reported disappointing earnings. (Full story) Korea lifted by PoscoSouth Korea's Kospi is up 0.1 percent to 604.39 in early afternoon going, recovering from a lower open. Steelmaker Posco is up 2.88 percent to 125,000 won and the country's largest credit card company, LG Card, is up 3.72 percent to 39,000 won. But there are declines for cell-phone service SK Telecom, off 1.09 percent to 181,500 won. Fixed-line telecom KT Corp. is down 1.94 percent to 48,050 won after reporting a large leap in quarterly profit, thanks in part to gains from selling a chunk of SK Telecom shares. (Full story) Chipmaker Samsung Electronics is off 0.34 percent to 293,000 won. DBS down in SingaporeSingapore's Straits Times index is basically flat, down 0.07 percent to 1,295.73. Bank stock DBS Group is dominating the blue-chip selling with a 2.88 percent drop to S$10.10. But smaller rival UOB is up 0.96 percent to S$10.50 and there are also gains for Singapore Airlines, up 0.51 percent to S$9.80. Malaysia's market is back from a holiday Tuesday with a minor decline, the Kuala Lumpur composite down 0.05 percent to 664.42 in late morning.
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