Tokyo, Korea up sharply on tech gains


Asian tech stocks are sharply higher in Wednesday trade

TOKYO, Japan -- Asian markets are sharply higher heading into afternoon trading on Wednesday, with Japan and South Korea both up more than 2 percent.

Taiwan's Taiex is also making good ground, up 1.75 percent. But Hong Kong is down slightly.

In Tokyo, a lower yen helped the benchmark Nikkei put on 233.07 points or 2.06 percent to 11,549.11 at the lunch break.

The broader capital-weighted Topix was more subdued, adding 0.92 percent to 1,084.03.

But the indexes are easing as the afternoon sets off. At noon, big banks were slightly weaker, but tech leaders Sony, Kyocera, Canon and NEC all rose.

South Korea is even stronger, with the Kospi index up 2.85 percent to 849.85 at midday.

Big gainers included market heavyweight Samsung Electronics, up 4.26 percent to 367,000 won, and SK Telecom up 4.45 percent to 258,000 won.

Daewoo Motor Sales, which trades as a proxy for Daewoo Motor, jumped more than 9 percent to 7,730 won.

Australian rate rise no hurdle


Australia lifted interest rates from 4.25% to 4.5% on Wednesday

Elsewhere in the region, Australian stocks took an expected 0.25 percentage points rate rise in their stride Wednesday to finish the morning up about 0.23 percent to 3,332.3.

Singapore stocks are also up.

Wall Street was mixed Tuesday, as traders digested the U.S. Federal Reserve's decision to leave interest rates unchanged at 1.75 percent. That decision was widely anticipated given uncertainty over the extent of the recovery there.

The Dow finished 0.29 percent higher at 9,836.55, while the Nasdaq slipped 0.3 percent to 1,573.82 (full story).

After the bell, Internet equipment leader Cisco reported better-than-expected third-quarter earnings, pointing to a stronger Nasdaq in Wednesday trade.

In Japan, mobile phone operator NTT DoCoMo, which is due to announce full year results later Wednesday that will show the company's first loss on record, was slightly easing by midday, down 0.3 percent to 317,000 yen.

Rival KDDI rose sharply, up 3.11 percent to 332,000 yen, while No. 3 player Japan Telecom did even better, up 5.36 percent to 393,000 yen.

Banks easier in Tokyo trade

Banking leader Mizuho Holdings was down 1.87 percent to 263,000 yen, and Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group gave up 1.5 percent to 858,000 yen.

With the yen trading at about 128 to the U.S. dollar, the big three Japanese automakers rose about 1 percent. Honda did best, up 1.2 percent.

In Australia, embattled retailer Coles Myer ended its run of outs, putting on 16 cents or 2.6 percent to A$6.36.

Banks were mixed after the Reserve Bank lifted the official cash rate from 4.25 percent to 4.5 percent - the first rate increase in almost two years.

Resources stocks BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto were slightly higher, while market heavyweight News Corp. also regained some of this week's lost ground, putting on 20 cents or 1.7 percent to A$11.88.

Shares in packaging group Amcor remain in a trading halt after it announced a $1.6 billion acquisition of the PET container business of Germany's Schmalbach-Lubeca.

Hang Seng hurting

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng is lower, but it often runs counter to other Asian markets. It stands at 11,779.82 just before noon. Some players predict it will soon hit 13,000 (full story).

Banking leader HSBC, the largest driver, is up about half a percent to HK$95.00.

In Taiwan, techs across the board are stronger. Chip foundry TSMC is up 1.83 percent to T$83.50 and rival UMC is up 2.25 percent to T$50. Asustek Computer is up 1.6 percent to T$122.50.

In Singapore, DBS Group is down 0.7 percent to S$13.80. The Straits Times stands at 1,728.36 around 30 minutes before the lunch break.