Export boost as Tokyo thumps yen

TOKYO apparently put its money where its mouth was and delivered a hefty kick at the resurgent yen. The move, which comes on the final day of the financial quarter, threw a lifeline to

As the yen skidded, traders mused that the Bank of Japan had finally been ordered to beat the currency back after verbal threats to do so from policymakers every business day since the recent Group of Seven meeting.

In such an atmosphere it was companies that depend on overseas sales for a chunk of their earnings that did best. Toyota, whose president said this week he was 'very worried' by the yen's backbone, rose 60 yen or 1.8% to 3,380.

Its rivals also gained ground. Honda put on 100 yen or 2.2% to 4560, while Nissan improved by 10 yen to 1,228, better by 0.8%. Consumer electronics majors were not left out of the buying mood. Sony made a fresh approach on the 4000-yen level, gaining 60 yen or 1.5% to 3950. Matsushita Electric Industrial was hoisted by 32 yen or 2.4% to 1367.

Buoyed by such advances the Nikkei 225 Average rose 151.34 points before dropping back to close at 10.219,05, a fall of 10.52 points.

Traders said the better showing was aided by Wall

Street's gains, decent chip-sales figures released overnight, and hopes that banking majors were set to release good quarterly figures.

There was also some hope that the quarterly Tankan survey of business sentiment due on Wednesday will provide another reason to believe that the world's number two economy is at last moving in the right direction.

Aided by the chip data, Advantest, which makes equipment that checks chips, gained 120 yen or 1.6% to 7680; Tokyo Electron firmed 30 yen or 0.4% to 7640 and NEC jumped 17 yen to 838, up 2%.

A brace of airlines - Japan Airlines System (JAL) and All Nippon Airways (ANA) - flew higher on news that they had jointly received emergency funding worth 85bn yen (£460m) from a Staterun bank to help them get over the effects of the Sars virus.

JAL jumped 15 yen or 4.9% to 319, while ANA, which flies mostly domestic routes, advanced two yen or 0.7% to 284.

In Hong Kong the show-stealer was Legend, China's largest personal computer maker. Its shares were better by 10 cents or 3.3% at HK$3.15.

Traders said the group, which commands about a quarter of the Chinese market, was playing catch-up, having underperformed the wider market over the past month and a half.

Pacific Century Cyberworks, owner of the local fixed-line network, continued to benefit from follow-through buying on a pact that will broaden its access to the rest of China. It rose five cents or 1% to HK$5.30.

Aided by strength across the board, the Hang Seng index climbed 157.57 points or 1.4% to 11,298.85.

With one eye on Wall Street, global lender HSBC put on HK$1 or 1% to HK$104.50.

South Korean tech bellwether Samsung Electronics, widely held by both domestic investors and foreign funds, picked up ground on the improving chip-sales numbers.

Global sales figures rose 4% last month compared with July to $13.42bn (£8bn). Samsung climbed 12,500 won or 3.2% to 399,000. The Seoul Composite was up 1% at 703.49, a rise of 7.43 points.