Tokyo holds onto early gains; HK down

Consumer electronics giant Sony was up almost 2 percent by midday Friday

TOKYO, Japan -- Tokyo stocks held onto early gains by midday on Friday, helped by tech strength and bank reform enthusiasm.

Technology stocks helped lift the benchmark Nikkei 225 average by 75.84 points or 0.59 percent to 13,038.27. That extended Thursday's 2.27 percent surge.

The broader TOPIX index added 0.75 percent or 9.61 points to 1,298.10.

Elsewhere in the region, the Australian market also was firmer, with the S&P/ASX200 picking up 18.1 points or 0.5 percent to 3428.9.

Bluechip resources and bank stocks were up, as was leading telco Telstra.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index was in negative territory near midday, dragged down by weakness in utilities and property players.

Reform hopes bolster Japan market

VIDEO CNN's Dalton Tanonaka with the Asian stock market update Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

In Seoul, gains by SK Telecom and Hyundai Motor helped the Kospi index stay slightly higher, up 5.77 points to 601.30, while in Taiwan the Taiex was in the red, down 68 points to 4916.80 on tech weakness.

Japanese market sentiment was bolstered by renewed hopes for structural reform of its banks, and also by gains in the U.S. Nasdaq index..

Consumer electronics giant Sony Corp rose 1.97 percent to 8,780 yen, recovering from a 6.2 percent drop over the past eight sessions to finish Thursday at its lowest closing point since April 10.

KDDI, Japan's number-two phone operator, jumped 7.3 percent to 588,000 yen, while Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp put on 2.84 percent to 687,000 yen, extending a 1.4 percent bounce in the previous session off an eight-year low.

The market's focus remained on the political front after Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's top economic advisers released a report that doubles as a manifesto for his structural reform programs such as fixing banks' bad loan problems and repairing the government's tattered finances.

Support for Koizumi 'wildly high'

"The reform plans lack necessary details, but support for Koizumi is still wildly high. We sense the market will firm on hopes for him once more -- least until Upper House elections in late July," said Hideki Kamiya, senior fund manager at Asahi Tokyo Investment Trust Management.

The Nikkei is still 10.4 percent below a six-month high of 14,556.11 on May 7, marked at the height of hopes for reform by the newly inaugurated Koizumi.

Mizuho and other bank stocks fell on profit-taking

Mizuho Holdings Inc and other banks fell to profit-taking after initial hopes the RCC's more active role would help clean up their debt-riddled balance sheets gave way to doubts about its efficacy.

The world's largest bank by assets, Mizuho fell 0.19 percent to 534,000 yen, paring some of the 10 percent jump on Thursday.

UFJ Holdings Inc was down 4.68 percent at 672,000 yen, and sector leader Mitsubishi Financial Group lost 1.83 percent to 1.07 million yen.

Autos were mixed as the market struggled to balance the benefits of a weaker yen with a brewing trade spat with China. Nissan Motor Co Ltd lost 1.07 percent to 831 yen, and Honda Motor Co Ltd gained 0.55 percent to 5,530

Reuters contributed to this report.