Big Asian stock markets up

Big Asian stock markets up

HONG KONG (AP): Asia's top three stock markets - Tokyo, Hong
Kong and Singapore - finished higher Wednesday, although most
smaller markets in the region fell.

In Tokyo, investors bid up the key stock index to a three-year
high, betting the worst may be over in Japan's economic slump.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average rose 310.69 points, or 1.5
percent, to 20,833.21. That was the Nikkei's highest close since
Dec. 5, 1996, when it finished at 20,943.90.

Steelmakers and chemical companies led the gains amid signs
that things might soon be getting better for domestic industries
hit hardest by Japan's deepest economic downturn in decades.

Hong Kong share prices got a boost from news of an alliance
between local Internet company Pacific Century CyberWorks and
Australian phone giant Telstra Corp.

The blue-chip Hang Seng Index rose 89.43 points, or 0.5
percent, to close at 16,577.09.

Shares rose as news dribbled out about the deal, in which
Telstra will invest US$3 billion into Pacific Century CyberWorks
and a joint mobile phone venture.

In Jakarta, Indonesian shares fell on continued selling in
tobacco and telecommunications blue chips. The Composite Index
ended down 5.003 points, or 0.9 percent, at 564.737.

In Singapore, shares ended marginally higher, led by strong
buying in smaller stocks. The benchmark Straits Times Index rose
4.01 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,135.39.

In Bangkok, shares soared 3.4 percent, as investors snapped up
banking, chemical, and energy shares. The SET index gained 13.71
points, or 3.4 percent, to 414.45.

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian share prices ended slightly higher,
boosted by gains in Telekom Malaysia. The Composite Index of 100
blue-chip stocks rose 7.03 points, or 0.8 percent, at 940.60.

In Manila, Philippine stocks fell as investors continued to
cash in on recent gains. The 30-company Philippine Stock Exchange
Index closed 12.88 points, or 0.7 percent, lower at 1,744.57.

In Seoul, share prices slid 2.1 percent on the expiration of
options contracts, heavy foreign selling, and the U.S. Nasdaq
composite index's overnight fall. The key Korea Composite Stock
Price Index fell 18.04 points to 837.01.

In Sydney, Australian shares closed lower as investors sold
technology-related, media and telecommunications shares. The All
Ordinaries Index fell 22.0 points, or 0.7 percent, to 3,133.4.

In Taipei, Taiwanese shares tumbled, weighed down by the
continued slump on the Nasdaq. The Weighted Stock Price Index
fell 156.66 points, or 1.56 percent, to 9,911.39.

In Wellington, New Zealand shares slipped, dragged down by a
sharp slide in the price of market heavyweight Telecom Corp. of
New Zealand Ltd. The benchmark NZSE-40 Capital Index fell 16.20
points, or 0.8 percent, to 2,119.02.