Japanese stocks start week on a high


Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi leaves Monday for the U.S.

TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Japan's stock market is picking up some of the ground lost last week as it heads into Monday afternoon.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 average ended the morning up 2.33 percent to 9,342.23 as the market responds to better employment data out of the United States.

Japan's stock market is also expected to get a 3 trillion yen ($23.5 billion) boost from the Koizumi administration.

On Friday the market fell 1 percent, with the Nikkei dipping to 8,929.26 at one point, its lowest level since July 1983.

On Monday, the broader capital-weighted Topix is 1.92 percent higher at 911.54 at the midday break.

Elsewhere in the region, markets in Australia, Hong Kong and Taiwan are stronger, South Korea is tending into the red, while Singapore and New Zealand are also weaker.

Koizumi heading to U.S.


Tech stocks are broadly higher in Tokyo trade Monday

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi leaves later Monday for the United States, where data released Friday showed the unemployment rate eased to a five-month low of 5.7 percent in August. (Full story)

That helped the Nasdaq index jump 3.5 percent on Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average put on 1.73 percent.

After a down week last week that saw the market touch 19-year lows, Japanese stocks are showing much more confidence Monday after reports a fresh short-term boost is about to be unveiled. (Full story)

According to Kyodo news agency, Koizumi on Sunday agreed the government should pump about 3 trillion yen of public money into exchange-traded funds (ETFs) as part of a planned package to revive the economy.

"Two or three trillion yen is quite a lot of money, so if the plan were to go ahead it would probably be a plus for the market in the short term," Garry Evans, chief strategist at HSBC Securities, told Reuters news agency.

"In the long term it represents a very bad U-turn from the Koizumi government's move toward a more open market. Eventually the government would have to sell these ETFs, possibly at a loss," Evans added.

Banks stronger


Japanese automakers are also among the gainers Monday, led by Honda and Toyota

Japan's big four banks are all stronger after last week's bad run, when the bank's massive share portfolios were in the spotlight.

Mizuho Holdings, the world's largest bank by assets, has jumped 5.29 percent to 239,000 yen after tumbling to a seven-month low last Wednesday.

UFJ Holdings is up 4.5 percent to 255,000 yen. Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group is 3.9 percent higher at 774,000 yen.

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp is up 5.22 percent to 564 yen.

Technology related stocks are also sharply higher, with Toshiba up 3.3 percent to 408 yen, Hitachi up 3.15 percent to 622 yen and NEC 2.3 percent firmer at 622 yen.

Consumer electronics leader Sony is 2 percent higher at 5,010 yen and Canon has put on 3.16 percent to 3,920 yen.

Mobile phone leader NTT DoCoMo is 2.16 percent higher at 238,000. Parent NTT is up 2.5 percent and rival KDDI has surged almost 9 percent to 352,000 yen in one of the market's standout performances.

Automakers are also stronger, with market leader Toyota up 2.8 percent to 2,955 yen and Honda 2.3 percent higher to 4,890 yen. Nissan has put on 1.78 percent to under-perform the market.

Both the Nikkei and the Topix are reining in their gains as the afternoon session starts, up 1.62 percent and 1.44 percent around 10 minutes after the start of trade.

Australia solidly up

In Australia, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 is 0.85 percent higher at 3,115.7 by mid-afternoon.

Media group and market heavyweight News Corp. is one of the biggest gainers, up 3.87 percent to A$9.40. News get most of its revenue from the United States.

Miners BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and MIM are also stronger, as are the big four banks. But leading retailer Woolworths is about 0.6 percent lower at A$11.93.

John Fairfax Holdings, Australia's No. 2 newspaper publisher, is down 0.65 percent to A$3.06 after reporting a full-year profit of A$53.7 million. Operating profit was slightly above market expectations.

Korea, Hong Kong off

In Seoul, the Kospi is down 0.4 percent to 705.85.

Samsung Electronics is 1.1 percent higher at 325,500 won and SK Telecom is up by a similar margin to 228,500 won.

Hyundai Motor is about 1.25 percent stronger at 32,450 won, but Daewoo Motor Sales is in the red, down 0.7 percent to 8390 won.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng is trading 0.45 percent lower at 9,677.52 a little before noon, after starting the day with gains.

Blue chips HSBC and Hutchison Whampoa higher. China Unicom is flat and larger rival China Mobile is down marginally.

Taiwan's Taiex is 0.54 percent higher at 4,483.37.

Market heavyweight TSMC is up 1.26 percent at T$48.10 and smaller rival UMC is 0.75 percent higher at T$27.00.