Asian Markets Update: Tech, Telecom Stocks Rebound
TOKYO -- It was as if Thursday's tech tumble was created so that investors could find another opportunity to climb back into the sector. With
Nasdaq
rallying overnight, Asian investors bargain hunted for shares of chip makers, erasing most of the losses seen yesterday.
Still, investors in Tokyo remained cautious ahead of the weekend meeting between the
Group of Seven
finance ministers and the upcoming policy board meeting by the
Bank of Japan
on July 17.
The
Nikkei 225
index rose 115.87 points to 17,398.24, while the
Topix
index, which includes all shares listed on the
Tokyo Stock Exchange
, climbed 6.73 to 1597.36. The
Jasdaq
small-cap index jumped 1.09, or 1.3%, to 87.23, while the Nikkei
over-the-counter
index rose 13.41 to 1790.60.
Most Japanese chip makers gained during the course of the day but got hit by some light profit taking by dealers by the end of the session.
Tokyo Electron
rose 520 yen, or 3.6%, to 15,000 ($139.51),
Mitsubishi Electric
(MIELY)
shed 22, or 2.0% to 1085, while
Matsushita Electric Industrial
(MC) - Get Report
climbed 20 to 2815.
Softbank
rallied 2000, or a whopping 18.7%, to 12,700 after a week-long slump.
Nippon Telegraph & Telephone
(NTT)
gained 60,000, or 4.1%, to 1.54 million despite a report in the
Wall Street Journal
today that said the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation raised concerns over the telecom company's intended purchase of
Verio
(VRIO)
.
With many investors scrambling to cover their short positions, the greenback edged higher against the yen and recently bought 107.52.
Hong Kong's
Hang Seng
index rose 340.37 points, or 2.1%, to 16,829.96 largely on a telecom rally.
Hutchison Whampoa
(HUWHY)
jumped HK$1.50, or 1.4%, to 109.50 ($14.04) after reports that the firm would withdraw from the Netherlands auction for third-generation mobile phone licenses, while
China Mobile
(CHL) - Get Report
rose 3.00, or 4.3%, to 72.25.
Sun Hung Kai Properties
(SUHJY)
gained 1.75, or 2.9%, to 61.75 on news that its newest apartment development project was enjoying brisk demand. SHK's partner in the development
China Resources Enterprise
jumped 0.40, or 4.0%, to 10.30.
Elsewhere in Asia, Korea's
Kospi
index gained 4.11 to 841.74, while Taiwan's
TWSE
index dropped 116.31, or 1.4%, to 8173.08.
