Japan pushes Asian stocks higher


The Nikkei had a mirror image of Monday's showing, regaining just more than it had lost and posting three up days out of four

By staff and wire reports

HONG KONG, China - Asian stocks rallied on the back of a strong showing in Japan on Tuesday.

The Nikkei regained all the ground it lost on Monday and more, making it three strong showings out of four. Both South Korea and Taiwan moved strongly ahead, too.

Australia ended with a moderate gain after a see-saw day. Across the Tasman, the New Zealand exchange just outdid its bigger neighbor.

Hong Kong dipped into negative territory, but rebounded to close virtually flat with a 0.18 percent gain.

Singapore was also higher, up almost 1 percent in late afternoon trade.

Bargain buying in Japan

In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei average ended up 1.77 percent or 185.28 points at 10,637.82. That was a strong bounce from an opening that saw it dip into the red.

It also reversed Monday's showing, when it fell 1.7 percent.

The broader TOPIX index put on about a third as much, rising 0.60 percent or 6.38 points to 1,078.16.

Trading was quiet, with investors looking at stocks that have sold off.

Advantest, a maker of chip-testing equipment, climbed 1.67 percent to 6,100 yen. It had taken a 10 percent beating on Monday after a profit warning last week.

Tokyo Electron Ltd, a maker of semiconductor equipment, jumped 5.34 percent to 5,130 yen.

Some analysts believe recent weakness makes for a chance to buy internationally oriented blue chips in Japan that could benefit from a global rebound, if and when it comes.

Sony up 20 percent in past two weeks

"What's happening now on one level is that the equities market is moving back to the more neutral opinion of economic prospects," said Alex Kinmont, Japan equity strategist at Nikko Salomon Smith Barney.

Sony Corp, which gets 30 percent of sales in the United States, rose 1.03 percent to 4,900 yen. It's up 20 percent over the past two weeks.

NEC Corp. gained 2.39 percent to 1,159 yen after the PC and chip maker said it and Microsoft Corp would form a strategic alliance to serve corporate clients, including joint development of new products.

NEC said the alliance would not include any capital tie-ups.

Japan's No. 2 carmaker Nissan stock rose 3.1 percent to end at 600 yen. Its president confirmed the company may "soon" buy a stake in its partner Renault, which is also expected to raise its ownership of Nissan in return.

Drug stocks, typically seen as safe havens, are gaining from the ongoing fighting in Afghanistan.

Sankyo Co., Japan's number-two pharmaceutical firm, tacked on 4.02 percent to 2,460 yen. Number one Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd added 1.6 percent at 5,700 yen.

Late rally puts Hong Kong up for day

In Hong Kong, the benchmark Hang Seng index finished up 0.18 percent at 10,148.49. A late rally saw it move from negative to positive territory in the last hour of trade.

Hong Kong's stocks have been battered by their close links with U.S. markets in recent weeks. American-oriented stocks again had a torrid time Tuesday.

Small-motor maker Johnson Electric fell 16 percent to HK$6.85 after warning sales would drop 6 percent for the first half of the year. It gets most of its revenue in the United States.

Trading company Li & Fung lost 6.4 percent to HK$7.25 thanks to its reliance on American shipments.

In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index firmed 0.4 percent or 11.7 points to close at 3,210.0.

But volume was modest. Investors have grouped around defensive stocks like mining companies.

BHP gained 2.3 percent to close at A$9.66 after the Anglo-Australian miner told shareholders it would maintain current dividend payments despite the global slowdown.

WMC jumped another 4.1 percent to close at A$9.07. There is a persistent rumor that Alcoa Inc. is readying a bid for the mining company at around A$9.50 a share, possibly even later this week.

Retailer Harvey Norman added 19 cents to A$3.45 in afternoon trade after the group announced first-quarter sales rose 5.5 percent.

Taiwan and South Korea both strongly up

The New Zealand's benchmark NZSE-40 Capital index climbed 0.4 percent to close at 1,918.28.

Telecom New Zealand, the biggest stock trading in Wellington, rose 1 cent to NZ$4.33.

Brewer Lion Nathan fell 8 cents to NZ$5.32.

In Seoul, South Korea's benchmark Kospi index rose 1.54 percent to 521.91.

Financial stocks were moving higher after the government said it would introduce new stock-investment products, to help stabilize the market.

Kookmin Bank rose 3.8 percent to 17,650 won. H&CB spurted 4.5 percent to 29,900 won. The two banks are merging to form Korea's biggest bank.

SK Telecom hit a five-month high, up 4.9 percent at 235,500 won.

The biggest Korean listing lost ground, though. Samsung Electronics, the world memory chip No. 1, fell 0.6 percent to 159,000 won.

Taiwan stocks jumped more than two percent at the close as investors picked up top local microchip stocks, despite heavy declines in their U.S. counterparts. The benchmark TAIEX finished up 82.04 points or 2.21 percent at 3,794.86.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Taiwan's biggest listing, continues to draw overseas investors. It rose 3.74 percent to T$55.50.

The story is the same for rival United Microelectronics, which rose 2 percent to T$29.20. Between them, the two companies account for about 15 percent of Taiwan's total market capitalization.

Singapore stocks were slightly higher but tech stocks stayed weak. The benchmark Straits Times Index stood at 1,433.68, up 0.91 percent, in late trade.

Reuters contributed to this report.