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Asia mixed, Japan up 1%
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November 15, 2000: 6:21 a.m. ET
NTT DoCoMo, techs boost Nikkei as indexes drift in Hong Kong and Singapore
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LONDON (CNNfn) - A sharp gain for mobile-phone operator NTT DoCoMo and strength among technology stocks helped Japan's leading index rise 1 percent Wednesday, but benchmark gauges in Singapore and Hong Kong fell.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 closed up 139.10 points at 14,799.14, led by a 6 percent jump for DoCoMo a day after the mobile-phone company posted a better-than-expected 22 percent surge in first-half profit after the market closed.
 The Hang Seng Index closed down 50.12 points, or 0.3 percent, to 15,127.40, dragged down by a 3.3 percent drop for Internet company Pacific Century CyberWorks.
The Straits Times index in Singapore fell 22.87 points, or 1.2 percent, to 1,957.63. High tech stocks Omni Industries, Chartered Semiconductor, Venture Manufacturing and Datacraft accounted for a third of the index's point loss.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index climbed 0.9 percent, with the country's second-ranked telecommunications operator Cable & Wireless Optus jumping 4.3 percent after saying it is inviting bids for parts or all of its assets. Rival Telstra rose 2.9 percent.
In other markets, Seoul's KOSPI index added 0.8 percent while the Taiwan  Weighted index in Taipei fell 0.6 percent.
Tokyo's gain came a day after the Nasdaq composite snapped a six-day losing streak, rising 171.52 points, or 5.8 percent, to 3,138.24. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 163.81 points to close at 10,681.06.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar climbed to ¥108.48 from ¥107.74 at the end of the previous business day in Tokyo.
NTT DoCoMo's parent company Nippon Telegraph and Telephone gained 3 percent, after falling 10.8 percent over the previous six sessions.
Investors still cautious
But volatility in U.S. techs, an uncertain outlook for the Japanese economy and a rift in the ruling party over the future of Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori kept institutional investors largely out of the market.
"Without the Nasdaq's rebound, the news of DoCoMo's earnings would not have had such an impact," said Nobuaki Kurisu, chief fund manager at Sumisei Global Investment Trust Management. "We, those who manage long-term funds, are still cautious."
Among Japanese tech stocks, chipmaker NEC rose 2.4 percent and Sumitomo Electric, a maker of fiber-optic cable, rose 5.2 percent. Key electronics maker Sony added 0.6 percent, and rival Matsushita Electric Industrial, the maker of Panasonic appliances, added 1.9 percent.
 Internet investor Softbank, which has holdings in many Nasdaq-listed companies, rose 3.6 percent.
Mitsubishi Electric rose 2.9 percent after reporting upbeat half-year earnings on Tuesday.
In Hong Kong, Internet and telecom company Pacific Century CyberWorks fell 3.3 percent, one of the biggest losers among blue chips.
Some bank stocks were also weak. Hang Seng Bank slipped almost 3 percent, after jumping 4.8 percent Tuesday, while its parent company HSBC Holdings declined 0.9 percent.
Ports-and-telecoms conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa rose 0.5 percent. The company benefited from solid results from U.K. mobile-phone operator Vodafone Group, in which Hutchison has a 2.5 percent stake. Vodafone's report lifted shares across the telecom sector, which had been hit by a string of profit warnings by U.S. high-tech companies.
In Singapore, Omni Industries plunged 8.1 percent a day after soaring more than 10 percent amid new speculation – denied by the company – that a buyout was looming.
Chipmaker Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing dropped 2.6 percent, contract electronics maker Venture Manufacturing fell 1.2 percent. Straits Times index heavyweight Singapore Telecommunications rose 1.1 percent.
Elsewhere in Asia, the KLSE composite index in Malaysia fell 1 percent, Thailand's SET index inched up 0.2 percent, the PHS composite in Manila was little changed at 1,469.20, Jakarta's JSX index shed 1.6 percent and the BSE Sensex in Mumbai added 0.1 percent.
--from staff and wire reports 
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