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Exporters push Tokyo stocks higher
TOKYO, Japan -- Japanese stocks opened higher on Friday as several blue chips including exporters and brokerages such as Nomura Holdings rose after Wall Street bounced back following Washington's lowering of its terror alert. On Thursday, the key Nikkei index hit 20-year lows before regaining some composure to end the day very slightly higher. "Gains in U.S. stocks and a halt in the yen's rise are both supportive for the market," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equity marketing at Nikko Cordial Securities. The Nikkei average was up 0.66 percent to 8414.14 points in early trading. The broader TOPIX index was up 0.58 percent at 823.93. On Wall St, the Dow Jones index closed 78.012 points higher at 7884.99 while the tech-laden NASDAQ firmed 20.26 points to 1323.94. Nomura, Japan's biggest brokerage house, was up 0.93 percent at 1,410 yen. Although the threat of war with Iraq was still hanging over the global economy, easing concerns about a terror attack against the United States, Japan's biggest market, prompted buying in some exporters that have been battered recently. Toyota Motor Corp, Japan's biggest automaker, was up 0.53 percent at 2,820 yen and rival Nissan Motor Co Ltd put on 1.13 percent to 894 yen. Before the market opened, the government released a series of economic data, including a jobs report and industrial output for January. Analysts said the data were near market expectations and had little impact on early trading. Industrial production rose 1.5 percent in January from a month earlier, compared with a consensus forecast for a rise of 1.4 percent in a Reuters survey of 19 economists. Other data showed Japan's unemployment rate rose to 5.5 percent in January, up from a revised 5.3 percent the month before and matching the record high set in October. The South Korean market is still struggling with mounting security concerns on the Korean peninsula with the Kospi index 0.36 percent lower at 580.37 in early trading. Also adding a negative tone were South Korean consumer prices, which rose sharply in February fueled by record oil prices. Further south, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index had gained almost 1 percent in value to 2820.90 shortly before noon. Major bank CBA was leading the way, up A22c to $A24.64, while key telco Telstra was struggling, just A1c firmer at $A4.09. In New Zealand the NZSE Top 40 index had inched up 0.1 percent to 1876.26 while in Singapore, the Strait Times marker was 0.82 percent higher at 1281.66 shortly after the opening. Reuters contributed to this report.
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