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Asia mixed, Japan rises
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October 2, 2000: 5:40 a.m. ET
Tokyo up on bargain hunting; Taipei, Seoul, Singapore hit by tech slump
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LONDON (CNNfn) - Asian markets closed mixed Monday as bargain hunting lifted Tokyo's main index while losses for technology shares dragged down smaller markets following a steep drop on the U.S. Nasdaq market Friday.
Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 average rose 1 percent to 15,902.51, while
Singapore's Straits Times index fell 1.2 percent at 1,972.95. The Hong Kong market was closed for a national holiday.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar strengthened marginally against the Japanese yen. The dollar bought ¥108.27, up from ¥108.08 in New York late on Friday.
On Wall Street Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 1.6 percent to 10,650.92 and the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite index closed down 2.8 percent at 3,672.65, after an earnings warning the previous day from Apple Computer (AAPL: Research, Estimates).
Tokyo stocks slip
Tokyo stocks turned around an earlier 1.5 percent dip as investors snapped up shares seen as cheap after recent losses.
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone rose 7.6 percent while its mobile-phone unit NTT DoCoMo rose 3.2 percent. Conglomerate Sumitomo gained 1.5 percent. Carmaker Toyota rose 2.6 percent while rival Mazda surged 4.8 percent.
The afternoon rally left some high-tech stocks behind, though. Consumer electronics heavyweight Sony shed 1.5 percent, while Toshiba, the world's largest maker of notebook computers, lost 1 percent and Advantest, a maker of semiconductor testing devices, tumbled 4.3 percent.
Tech shares hit Singapore, Taipei, Seoul
Singapore's bourse was hit by sharp falls in shares of companies that supply Apple. NatSteel Electronics plunged 9.6 percent while Omni Industries fell 2.6 percent.
In Taipei, shares ended lower as news that a high-profile nuclear power project may be cancelled weighed on already weak market sentiment. The Taiwan Weighted index fell 2.6 percent to 6,024.07.
Chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing fell 1.5 percent and dynamic random access memory chipmaker Mosel fell 0.8 percent, although rival Winbond rose 0.6 percent.
Seoul's benchmark Kospi index was the biggest loser in Asia, tumbling 3.9 percent to 589.22. Chip company Samsung Electronics dived 5.7 percent while SK Telecom shed 5.2 percent.
Elsewhere in Asia Pacific
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.1 percent to 3,300.6.
Telecom operator Telstra rose 0.5 percent after the company said it remained positive on its planned joint venture with Hong Kong Internet and telecom firm Pacific Century CyberWorks, despite a report that PCCW was preparing an alternative partner in case the deal fell through.
Media firm News Corp. followed its ADRs lower, falling 2.2 percent. Mining concern Rio Tinto shed 1.4 percent.
Manila's PHS Composite index ended down 0.7 percent. Bangkok's SET index slipped 0.1 percent and the KLSE Composite index in Kuala Lumpur fell 1.3 percent. Jakarta's JSX index was up 2.6 percent. 
--from staff and wire reports
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