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Asia hangs onto gains
TOKYO, Japan -- Asian stocks are broadly higher at midday Thursday as investors speculate that the U.S.-led drive on Baghdad means the war in Iraq may soon be over. Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand are all in the black, following on from the strong gains in U.S. and European markets on Wednesday. But Hong Kong is down slightly, reflecting worries about the impact of the SARS virus on its economy. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 average is 0.43 percent higher to 8104.89 at the end of the morning session. The broader Topix index is up 0.44 percent to 801.03. The market's biggest stock, mobile phone company NTT DoCoMo, is 2.17 percent higher at 235,000 yen. Automakers Toyota, Nissan and Honda are all stronger, as is big exporter Sony, up 1.45 percent to 4210 yen. Tech-related issues are also firmer, with Toshiba up 1.27 percent to 318 yen and NEC 1.56 percent higher to 391 yen. But Japan's big banks are continuing to decline. Mizuho Financial Group, the world's biggest bank by assets, is off 5.4 percent to 77,100 yen after earlier sinking to a record low of 76,000 yen. SMFG is down 4.28 percent to 179,000 yen -- also close to a record low -- and UFJ is down 3.74 percent to 103,000 yen. The U.S. dollar is buying 118.73 yen in Tokyo at midday. The gains in Asia come after a strong performance on Wall Street Wednesday, where shares moved higher on optimism that the war in Iraq might end sooner than expected. The Dow Jones industrial average put on 2.7 percent to close at 8,285.06, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq composite rose 3.6 percent to 1396.72. (Full story) In South Korea, Seoul's Kospi index is up half a percent to 545.71, with market heavweight Samsung Electronics putting on 0.36 percent to 280,000 won and big exporter Hyundai Motor up 1.75 percent to 23,300 won. Banks are also higher, led by Korea Exchange Bank and Shinhan Financial Group. Australia higherIn Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 is 1.07 percent higher at 2912.8 in early afternoon, driven up by a 4 percent gain for the market's biggest stock, media group News Corp. News, which is expected to make a bid for U.S. satellite broadcaster DirecTV, is at A$11.48. (Full story) Big resources group BHP Billiton is 2.8 percent higher at A$9.45 and airline Qantas is also recovering from last week's sharp decline. It is up 2.94 percent to A$3.15. Singapore's Straits Times index is up about half a percent to 1306.88 near midday, with good gains for Singapore Airlines and banking leader DBS. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is slightly in the red at 8705.02 near midday, with falls for PCCW and China Mobile. Blue chips HSBC and Hutchison Whampoa are modestly higher. Taiwan's Taiex is 1.15 percent higher to 4361.01, pushed higher by a 3 percent gain for chip foundry TSMC. Its smaller rival UMC is up 2 percent. New Zealand's Top 50 is virtually flat, up 0.04 percent to 1933.24. Air New Zealand and Telecom NZ are both in the red.
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