Intel sparks sizzling chips show

ALL NEWS from the US was good news in Asian markets today. Technology stocks raced ahead after an upbeat forecast from chip giant Intel, while a slowdown in housing starts was seen as relieving upward pressure on interest rates.

Chipmakers from Singapore to Seoul and Tokyo to Taiwan burst out of the starting gate, lifting regional markets by up to 3% after Intel shares soared more than 5% in after-hours trading on reporting improved prospects for its second quarter.

Further evidence of an upturn in demand for chips and other components was delivered by telecommunications group Sprint, which reported better-than-expected first-quarter profits.

Tokyo investors continued to disregard the lack of progress on economic reforms, and concentrated on the major chip-related stocks, which led the Nikkei 225 up 197.05 to 11,543.71. Top gainers were equipment manufacturers Tokyo Electron and Advantest, which surged more than 3%, while Toshiba led heavyweight computer and chipmakers with a gain of more than 2%.

Sparkling operating profits results from General Motors overnight were another bull factor in Tokyo, as they were seen as further evidence of the strength of automobile demand. Stocks in car makers accelerated, with Nissan in pole position with a near-5% gain in heavy turnover.

South Korea won back its position as the best-performing major market in Asia this year as its technology stocks pushed the Kospi up more than 3%, with a 27.16-points gain to a 26-month high of 928.45, making a gain this year of 33%.

As foreign buyers piled into the market, Samsung Electronics, the world's largest maker of memory chips, jumped 4.25% to a record high. Korea's top car maker, Hyundai, also hit a new high as it bounded almost 6% on rosier prospects for domestic and US sales.

Taiwan tested 18-month highs as local chip stocks joined the regionwide rally, and the Weighted Average added 147.45 to 6405.18. Singapore's Straits Times index rose 9.87 points to 1779.92, buoyed by computer related stocks.

Indications that the US economy's recovery will be sufficiently muted not to require an early increase in interest rates brought buyers back for Hong Kong property stocks. Any upward movement by the US Federal Reserve would be immediately followed by Hong Kong lenders because of the local currency's peg to the dollar. The Hang Seng broke through the 11,000 level for the first time since the beginning of the month, ending ahead 302 points at 11,090.6.

Sydney investors were in less bullish mood, as local interest rate concerns held sway and the All Ordinaries closed unchanged at 3336.9. News Corp benefited from overnight gains on Wall Street, and put on 1.75%. Retailers slipped after recent strong gains as poor results from stores group Harvey Norman suggested that the news from the sector may prove patchy.

Strong blue-chip stocks in Malaysia and Thailand took both markets sharply higher. The Kuala Lumpur Composite rose 9.41 points to 791.53, and the SET index gained 6.31 points to 385.94, but the Jakarta Composite shed 1.63 to 549.97.

Prices and indices in this section are supplied from various sources and calculated at different times and may not always match those listed in the tables.