Asian shares cautious but generally higher

Asian shares cautious but generally higher

TOKYO (AFP): Stocks in Asia took heart Thursday from a strong
rise on Wall Street's technology index but remained wary over the
possibility of higher U.S. interest rates, dealers said.

Singapore, Indonesia and Kuala Lumpur all posted strong gains
on domestic factors but the rest of the region took a more
cautious approach.

Dealers said institutional investors were reluctant to take
major new positions ahead of a Group of Seven meeting in Japan
this weekend and with the direction of U.S. rates still unclear.

In Tokyo, shares edged up 0.6 percent as high-tech issues
regained favor after a record-breaking rally by the Nasdaq index
in the United States.

The Nikkei average of 225 selected issues rose 110.26 points
to end at 19,008.01.

Bargain-hunting and position-covering in selected blue chips
bolstered the market, brokers said, but buying ran out of steam
when the Nikkei average neared 19,200 points.

"Buying petered out in the afternoon session as investors with
real demand stuck to the sidelines," Segawa said.

Investors continued to sell cyclical and low-priced issues
which have been pressured by banks and companies unwinding their
cross shareholdings.

But there was strong downside support due to expectations of
demand coming from new investment trusts.

In Hong Kong, share prices dropped 0.4 percent on late
selling. The key Hang Seng index lost 60.03 points to close at
15,215.31, after gaining 0.2 percent in morning trade on
selective bargain hunting.

In Jakarta, Indonesian share prices closed 2.2 percent higher,
boosted by draft budget proposals and the signing of a letter of
intent with the International Monetary Fund. The Jakarta Stock
Exchange composite index closed up 14.158 points at 670.153.

In Singapore, share prices closed 2.7 percent higher on
bargain hunting and better than expected trade figures. The
benchmark Straits Times Index rose 60.66 points to end at
2,315.53.

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian shares closed 1.9 percent higher on
fresh local and foreign buying. The Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange
composite index ended up 17.48 points at 950.86.

In Seoul, South Korean share prices closed barely higher after
renewed institutional bargain hunting wiped out earlier losses.
The Korea Stock Exchange composite index closed up 7.12 points at
945.90, off a low of 906.26.

In Taipei, the Taiwan stock market fell for the third
consecutive day. The Taiwan Stock Exchange weighted price index
moved down 14.49 points to 9,136.95.

In Bangkok, Thai stocks closed marginally higher. The Stock
Exchange of Thailand (SET) main index was up 0.31 points or 0.06
percent at 486.64 while the select SET 50 was down 0.11 at 34.99.

In Manila, Bargain hunters helped push the Philippine stock
market 0.2 percent higher. The Philippine Stock Exchange
composite index rose 4.84 points to close at 2,053.37 points.

In Sydney, Australian shares closed up one percent. The
Australian Stock Exchange's benchmark All Ordinaries index ended
up 31.7 points at 3,137.1.

In Auckland, new Zealand's share market took another beating.
The NZSE-40 index dropped a hefty 1.7 percent, or 37 points, to
2,086.8.