LONDON (CNNfn) - Asian stock markets had mixed fortunes on Tuesday as the blue chip index in Tokyo rallied for a second session to close almost 2 percent ahead, while Hong Kong slipped from recent highs to record a 1 percent decline.
Investors in Tokyo were encouraged by the previous day's strong performance by the Nasdaq composite, pushing electronics and technology shares ahead, leaving the benchmark Nikkei 225 index to close up 316 points, or 1.9 percent, at a session high of 16,907.55. The index gained 1.7 percent on Monday.
In Hong Kong, the property and financial stocks that have underpinned the market's climb all fell, leaving the Hang Seng index down 180 points, or 1.1 percent, at 16,086.74 after a slump in late trading that briefly saw the index fall below 16,000.
Singapore's Straits Times index benefited from demand for blue-chip shares to close near its session high at 2,101.08, a gain of 0.7 percent.
 In South Korea the Kospi index remained the most volatile in the region, jumping 4 percent to close at 785.32. Leading financial stocks rose in the last hour of trade on a Korean government announcement it would inject funds into the money market and prop up ailing investment banks.
In the U.S. Monday, the Nasdaq composite soared 3.35 percent to its highest level in two months and the Dow Jones industrial average jumped 108.54 points, or 1 percent, to 10,557.84, powered by a surge for semiconductor giant Intel (INTC: Research, Estimates) after upbeat comments from a leading Wall Street brokerage.
Sony goes mobile
In Tokyo, the move into tech stocks pushed chipmaker NEC's shares up almost 3 percent, while Sony added 1 percent after announcing plans to develop a range of cellular phones and other handheld communications products.
Internet investor Softbank rose 5.9 percent, following gains for U.S. high-tech shares Monday. The company has holdings in an array of U.S.-based Internet companies.
 Japanese electronics and electrical machinery heavyweight Hitachi rose 1.5 percent after daily newspaper Nihon Keizai Shimbun said the company had reached an agreement with U.S.-based IBM (IBM: Research, Estimates) on a broad alliance in the area of mainframe computers.
In Hong Kong, property stocks suffered the sharpest declines, with Henderson Land down 2.8 percent and Sun Hung Kai Properties off 1.7 percent. The sector had rallied Friday after the government announced plans to cut new home building in a bid to revive the housing market.
Financial-services shares also dipped, with Hang Seng Bank falling 2 percent. Telecom company Hutchison Whampoa added to the market's losses with a 2.7 percent decline.
Elsewhere in Asia, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index edged up 0.1 percent, with telecom operator Cable & Wireless Optus surging 6.6 percent on expectations it would agree a pay-TV deal with media firm News Corp., whose own shares closed narrowly lower.
In Taiwan, the Weighted index in Taipei dropped 0.7 percent to close at 8,690.66, with its heavyweight chipmakers all losing ground.
Jakarta's JSX index closed 0.1 percent lower, Manila's PHS Composite ended a fraction lower, as did the KLSE Composite in Malaysia, while Bangkok's SET index closed down 0.26 percent. 
-- from staff and wire reports
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