DEBORAH MARCHINI, CNN ANCHOR: Now we're going to go to Dalton Tanonaka, to get a look at the Asian markets and how they fared today. I'm sorry to say it's not Dalton Tanonaka, but again Deborah Wang -- Deborah.</s>DEBORAH WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And I still have the same news that Dalton would give you -- good morning to you. It was, for the most part, a quiet day of trading around the Asia Pacific region, but that was not the case in Tokyo, where investors scooped up technology stocks, sending the Nikkei up more than 3.5 percent, to levels not seen since December. In Indonesia, the Jakarta Composite index picked up more than 1.75 percent. Traders were relieved after supporters of President Abdurrahman Wahid backed down from pledged protests over his second censure vote. In Australia, aside from the May Day protest outside the stock exchange, traders there saw little action. The S&P;/ASX 200 closed up only fractionally. And as I mentioned, tech stocks were in favor in Tokyo, following the Nasdaq's continued rally. Electronics giant Sony picked up more than 3 percent, Hitachi soared more than 11.5 percent, and one blue- chip stock that kept pace with the tech rally was Honda Motor. It gained 8.85 percent, after posting better-than-expected annual earnings. Japan Telecom firmed nearly 8.75 percent after that "Financial Times" report that Vodafone will buy British Telecom's 20 percent stake in the company, which is Japan's third largest carrier. And that's the business day here in Asia. Back to you, Deborah, in New York.</s>MARCHINI: All right, Deborah Wang, thanks for being so gracious. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Asian Market Update: Nikkei Up 3.5 Plus Percent