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Nikkei hits 19-month low
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October 30, 2000: 5:43 a.m. ET
Sony, electronics firms hurt Tokyo, HK dragged lower by China Mobile
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LONDON (CNNfn) - Pacific Rim markets ended mostly lower Monday, as top electronics companies lagged in Tokyo and telecom powerhouse China Mobile weighed on Hong Kong's leading index. Sydney's key index got a lift from a strong showing by media conglomerate News Corp.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 average fell 117.64 points, or 0.8 percent, to 14,464.56, at a new 19-month low. Traders cited disappointing earnings numbers in the electronics sector and uncertainty on the political front.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong dropped 102.56, or 0.7 percent, to close at 14,799.90. Index heavyweight China Mobile shed 3.3 percent as investors were said to be skittish about a US$5.1 billion share offering later this week by the company. Pricing is expected on Tuesday. 
One bright spot in the region was Sydney's ASX/S&P 200, up 0.6 percent. News Corp. rose 4.1 percent after a report said U.S. software powerhouse Microsoft (MSFT: Research, Estimates) may invest about $1 billion in Sky Global Network, a satellite broadcaster affiliated with News Corp.
On other key Asian markets, the Straits Times in Singapore shed 0.2 percent, the Taiwan Weighted index in Taipei fell 2.5 percent as leading chip makers slumped, while the KOSPI in Seoul dropped 2.1 percent.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar rose to ¥108.79, up ¥0.37 from the end of the previous business day in Tokyo. On Friday, Hidenao Nakagawa, a top cabinet minister and key aide of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori, resigned over allegations concerning a mistress, drugs and right-wing extremists, the latest in a series of scandals to rock the country's political leadership.
U.S. stocks rose Friday after economic data showed a fall in the rate of gross domestic product growth for the third quarter, reducing the likelihood of further interest rate rises. The Dow Jones industrial average rose more than 2 percent, while the Nasdaq composite edged up 0.2 percent.
Electronics reports hit Nikkei
High-tech bellwether Sony, which on Thursday posted a net loss of ¥68.5 billion for the half year through September, fell 4 percent Monday, adding to Friday's 7.5 percent fall.
Rival Toshiba shed 4.2 percent, despite saying Friday that it returned to profit on a consolidated basis for the half year through September. Traders said Toshiba shares fell on expectations the global semiconductor market is likely to soften in the second half of the business year to next March.
Kenwood was down 9.4 percent. Late on Friday the specialized audio equipment maker cut its group earnings forecast for the six months to September to a net loss of ¥3.10 billion from a net profit of ¥1.0 billion.
Sanyo Electric fell 2.7 percent, following a tumble of 14 percent in the previous three sessions. The maker of consumer electronics announced Friday a six-fold rise in group net profit for the past six months, citing solid demand for products like semiconductors and mobile phones. 
However, traders said the strong profit report wasn't enough to shake investors out of their gloom about Sanyo. Last week, the company discovered two faulty products and its president resigned.
Sega Enterprises plunged 9.6 percent. The maker of video games said after the market closed on Friday it expects a group net loss of ¥22.1 billion for the year to next March, down from a previous forecast of ¥1.5 billion profit.
Among top Internet stocks, shares of Internet investor Softbank fell 7.3 percent and counterpart Hikari Tsushin shed 5.1 percent.
In the drug sector, Daiichi Pharmaceutical added 2.3 percent. Traders said the stock got a lift from its announcement with electronics manufacturer Fujitsu that they will jointly develop medical products using genetic data. Fujitsu fell 2.6 percent.
Shares in brokerages were softer across the board after the announcement Friday of bearish earnings for the six months to September.
Nikko Securities fell 6.9 percent after reporting Friday net profit for the first half of the year fell 64 percent from a year earlier. Kokusai Securities shed 5.2 percent after reporting its first-half net sank 80 percent from a year ago.
Select bright spots in Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, winners included conglomerate CITIC Pacific, which jumped 5.8 percent following media reports that the company's potential partner in a mainland cable TV venture had bought stakes in two Chinese TV networks.
Legend Holdings, China's biggest computer maker, rose 1.6 percent on expectations of robust half-year results from the company Tuesday. Analysts estimate a surge in earnings of between 90 percent and 160 percent.
Also on the upside, Cathay Pacific Airways rose 2.6 percent, lifted by a bullish forecast from investment firm Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, which is optimistic about the airline's planned travel web site. Slipping oil prices were also helping the stock, analysts said.
Internet and telecom firm Pacific Century CyberWorks rose 0.8 percent, after losing 7.7 percent last week as investors panned a US$1.8 billion fund-raising plan in the form of a bond and rights issue.
In Singapore, shares of Singapore Telecommunications fell 1.7 percent and bank OCBC shed 3.6 percent. Trading in NatSteel Electronics, seen widely as a takeover target, were suspended for the day Monday ahead of a company statement.
Elsewhere in Asia, the KLSE composite in Malaysia fell 2.1 percent, Bangkok's SET edged up 1.5 percent, the PHS composite in Manila was little changed, the JSX index in Jakarta dropped 1.9 percent and Mumbai's Sensex ended down 1.1 percent. 
--from staff and wire reports
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