Markets mixed, fail to extend gains

Asian markets were mixed on Nasdaq's advances as investors took profits from recent gains

HONG KONG, China -- Asian markets were mixed by midday Friday, with some markets failing to extend their gains as investors took profits and shrugged off further advances on Wall Street.

In Tokyo, the benchmark Nikkei average ended the morning down 0.88 percent at 13,746.15.

After opening higher, Japanese stocks slipped slightly by midday, dragged down by a report that electronic component maker TDK Crop was facing a 49 percent tumble in earnings due to sluggish orders for electronic components.

Profit-taking

In Hong Kong, stocks opened slightly down, led by shares of property and selected telecom issues, as some investors took profits on Thursday's gains.

By midday, the Hang Seng Index was trading down 0.4 percent at 13,496.02, while shares in China's two dominant mobile phone operators, China Mobile HK and China Unicom fell 1.29 percent to HK$38.40 and 0.9 percent to HK$11.05 respectively.

Analysts, however, told CNN that the slight drop in the markets was not unusual, as investors are expected to take profits following several days of big gains.

"Markets do not go up in a straight line. We are at a juncture where there are as many disbelievers that this rally can continue and would be happy to take profits, as there are new believers thinking that the time has come," said Han Ong, Asia equity strategist for Salomon Smith Barney.

POSCO rebounds

In contrast, South Korean stocks got off to a firmer start as steel maker Pohang Iron and Steel Co made a comeback on a report it would cancel some of its stock to boost its share price.

The Korea Composite Stock Price Index was up 0.91 percent at 568.46, while the over-the-counter Kosdaq market was up 0.87 percent or 0.65 points at 75.55. POSCO was up 1.03 percent at 88,700. Top memory chipmaker Samsung Electronics was flat at 235,000 won.

In Taiwan, stocks climbed as investors were encouraged by the Nasdaq's overnight gain and upbeat corporate earnings. The main TAIEX was up 0.28 percent, at 5,623.99.

In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was down about 19 points at 3304.8. Bluechip BHP and key bank stocks were stronger, however,

Reuters contributed to this report.

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.