Asian markets split, Japan slumps Thursday

By staff and wire reports

HONG KONG, China -- Asian markets took different turns Thursday. The northeast Asian exchanges lost ground, with South Korea and Taiwan slipping.

Japan had particularly heavy losses, falling to its lowest close since October 1984.

But Hong Kong's U.S.-tied market made a forceful gain, matching an overnight runup in American stocks.

Markets in Australia and New Zealand moved ahead.

Stocks in Singapore and India also rose in afternoon trade, and many smaller markets like Malaysia gaining ground.

Malaysia was due to report second-quarter gross domestic product late in the day.

Kyocera cuts in Japan

In Japan, the Nikkei could not sustain Wednesday's strong move on domestic revamp hopes. The tech-sensitive index sank heavily, ending down 2.4 percent to 11,126.92.

The broader Topix index, not as driven by technology stocks, still gave up 1.6 percent to 1,147.39.

After the bell, circuits maker Kyocera Corp. slashed by half its profit forecast for the next business year.

It now expects to earn operating profit of $680 million (82 billion yen), instead of its previous projection of a 170 billion yen profit.

Kyocera stock fell 3.3 percent to 7,300 yen before the announcement. Its stock had been sinking after the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported it would make such a move.

Techs resumed their path south. Standard bearer Sony fell 4.15 percent to 5,550 yen, its lowest close since June 1999.

DoCoMo down again

NTT DoCoMo Inc., Japan's largest cell-phone operator, fell 6.88 percent to 1.49 million yen.

Investors fret it will have to write down its investments overseas, particularly in AT&T Wireless Group.

DoCoMo is Japan's biggest stock by market cap.

NTT Data Corp., another NTT group company, fared even worse. It lost 8.57 percent to 480,000 yen after competitor Nomura Research Institute said Wednesday it plans to go public in October.

Japan's top casual clothing retailer, Fast Retailing Co Ltd, fell 7.7 percent to 17,260 yen. It said it plans to open fewer of its popular Uniqlo stores in the next six months, opting instead for larger stores.

Uniqlo is also looking to expand into the United Kingdom, opening five stores by the end of September and more than 150 there over the next few years.

Sydney gains, losses in large caps

In Sydney, the benchmark S&P ASX/200 index rose 0.3 percent to 3,320.7. That was a strong showing given lags in some of its biggest stocks.

The largest listing in Australia, media giant News Corp., lost 1.7 percent to A$16.57.

Its bid for U.S. satellite company DirecTV drags on and on.

Australia's No. 2 bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, was a lead weight.

It fell 2.4 percent to A$30.05, after releasing disappointing profits on Wednesday.

Other big banks gained, though, with National Australia Bank up 1.6 percent to A$34.35.

Bionic ear maker Cochlear set a record high of A$46.00 after strong profits on Wednesday. It ended up 2.5 percent at $45.70.

Stocks in New Zealand ended with good gains, the NZSE-40 capital index rising 0.9 percent to 2,038.16.

Telecom New Zealand, the biggest stock in Wellington, rose 4 cents to NZ$5.05.

Mostly, though, gains came in defensive stocks. Australia and New Zealand both have economies that are more insulated than much of the world from the current economic slowdown.

Hong Kong has forceful gain

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended up 1.4 percent at 11,432.11. It has been the worst-performing index in Asia this year, giving up a quarter of its value thanks to the downturn in U.S. stocks and the property market at home.

But Thursday, Hong Kong stocks enjoyed the afterglow of a 1.6 percent rise in the Nasdaq overnight, and a 1.0 percent rise in the Dow Jones industrial average.

Ahead of their earnings, investors bid up the stocks of Cheung Kong and Hutchison Whampoa, the two flagship companies of Hong Kong's richest tycoon Li Ka-shing.

After selling heavily this week, ports-to-cell phone conglomerate Hutchison gained 2.69 percent to HK$66.75. Property developer Cheung Kong rose 1.85 percent to HK$68.75.

After the bell, Hutchison posted a net profit of HK$7.193 billion, down from HK$31.13 billion a year ago.

Cheung Kong netted a profit of HK$4.21 billion against HK$17.4 billion a year ago. It has been hurt by shrinking profits from Hutch.

The broader market was supported by this week's U.S. interest rate cut, which Hong Kong banks are matching.

Hong Kong's biggest stock, bank HSBC Holdings, rose 1.1 percent at HK$92.75.

It said it would match other banks in mimicking the Fed's rate cut.

Hutch, which has a strong cell-phone component, has been seeing a spillover from selling in China's cellular carriers.

China Mobile gained 3.39 percent to HK$25.95 Thursday. Rival and China cell-phone No. 2 China Unicom rose 7.81 percent to HK$10.35.

That made up somewhat for heavy losses from Wednesday. They have sold off since China Mobile reported profit growth of 58 percent last week.

Investors are worried that the two companies aren't adding as many higher-paying, profitable customers as they tap China's huge demand. In South Korea, the benchmark Kospi closed with a loss of 0.8 percent at 570.07.

Reforms in Korea got a double dose of good news on Thursday, as the government paid off its loans to the International Monetary Fund well ahead of schedule.

A group led by U.S. insurance giant American International Group also finalized a deal to take a stake in and management control of three Hyundai Group companies.

The 2 billion won deal was a year in the making and is partly funded by the Korean government. It gives AIG control of Korea's second-largest broker, Hyundai Securities.

Hyundai Securities stock sold off 10 percent to 9,000 won as investors sold on the news, having bid the stock up ahead of the deal.

Troubled world memory chip No. 3 Hynix Semiconductor lost 14 percent to 1,400. Its competitor Micron Technology feels that a creditor backed plan to swap some of the company's debt for equity amounts to a government subsidy.

The row threatens to burst into a full trade war.

Rival Samsung Electronics, Korea's biggest stock, closed flat at 192,500 won.

In Taiwan, the benchmark Taiex lost 0.6 percent to 4,459.76.

Electronics stocks, which drive the market, got little joy from Nasdaq, falling 0.9 percent.

Acer, the biggest computer maker on the island, fell 3.5 percent to T$16.80.

But Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest stock listed in Taiwan, rallied from heavy losses. It ended flat at T$62.00, despite an 11 percent hit to its overnight listing in the United States.

Singapore's Straits Times index was up 0.4 percent at 1,639.26 in afternoon trade.

Telecom SingTel was seeing the heaviest trading, up 1 percent at S$1.91. Australia has greenlighted SingTel's takeover of Cable & Wireless Optus, Australia's No. 2 telecom.

Despite SingTel's state backing, Australia said it didn't see a national security threat to the deal for Optus.

Stocks in Mumbai were up in afternoon trade, with gains of 0.2 percent.

Reuters contributed to this report.