Centre stage for NTT amid talk of deals

JAPANESE telecoms giant Nippon Telegraph and Telephone was a main attraction of unsettled Asian markets today, with shares in the group rebounding 2.83% to 1.09 million yen in Tokyo.

Details of a new iss ue of 300,000 shares set for November and reports, subsequently denied, of possible deals with Hong Kong's Pacific Century CyberWorks or Telstra, with which PCCW is currently finalising talks, helped spur interest in the stock.

PCCW was holding the talks in case its deal with Telstra falls through. The two groups unveiled an internet network and mobile joint venture in April, but a decline in PCCW's share price and pressure on telecoms valuations generally have sent the companies back to the negotiating table.

NTT has said it wants to strengthen its ties through foreign partnerships.

But the broader Japanese market succumbed to nerves ahead of the quarterly tankan business survey due tomorrow, and a region-wide dumping of technology shares sparked by Friday's profits warning from Apple Computer, which spurred a sharp sell-off for Wall Street.

By midday, Fujitsu, Japan's largest computer maker and major chipmaker, had slid 3.78% to 2415 yen, while Sony slid 4.11% to 10,510 yen. At the close the Nikkei 225 was 155.25 down at 15902.51.

Hong Kong was closed for Chinese National Day, but South Korean and Singapore tech counters were badly shaken by the Apple warning.

Korea led losers in Asia, tumbling 18.67 points or more than 3% to 594.55 as recent winners Samsung Electronics and SK Telecom fell sharply. SK Telecom had risen sharply last week after investors were cheered by news that the government would delay awarding hugely expensive licences for the next generation of mobile services. The Kospi was off 3.64% at 590.90 in late morning trade.

In Taiwan, a government pledge to mobilise nearly T$500 billion in stabilisation funds, if needed, helped soothe frayed nerves and limit further slippage after Saturday's 3.84% losses, though the likely cancellation of a high-profile nuclear power plant project, coupled with US stock losses, urged caution. The TAIEX was down 167 points at 6,024.07 in late morning trade.

In Australia the market was holding its own but a holiday in New South Wales hit volumes, and expectations of a a quarter-point interest rate rise by the central bank on Wednesday left many investors sidelined. The All Ordinaries rose 2.1 points at 3248.2.

Singapore's electronics shares slid early as companies like NatSteel Electronics and Omni Industries which did business with Apple took a hit. The Straits Times index was down 23.86 points or 1.19% at 1,956.64.

In Bangkok an upcoming election, and the Apple warning sparked more losses for the already-depressed SET index, which fell 1.42 points to 275.87. The SET 50 index fell 0.12 points (0.63%) to 18.94.

Malaysian shares were also fallers with chipmakers hard hit by concerns of a possible global slowdown in demand for computer products. By the break, the KLCI was off 4.95 points, or 0.69%, to

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