DAVID HAFFENREFFER, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Wall Street's gains failed to lift most of the Asian markets.</s>DEBORAH MARCHINI, CNN ANCHOR: Andrew Stevens wraps up the day in the region from our studios in Hong Kong. Hello, Andrew.</s>ANDREW STEVENS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Deborah. Hello, David. Well, Tokyo markets watching in something close to amazement today as a fight that's been simmering in the corridors of power between the government and the independent Bank of Japan suddenly went public. BoJ Governor Masaru Hayami has been pushing for months to raise interest rates, but the government has been against the move for fear of upsetting the recovery. It's been a hot topic, but very much in the private domain, until today when Japan's finance minister, the head of the Economic Planning Agency, and the head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, all lined up to denounce any moves to raise interest rates. So all eyes now are on the Bank of Japan's meeting on Friday where interest rates will be the key issue. Well, markets wary of committing themselves before then. The Nikkei 225 falling just over one percent today in what was light trading. Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong, hit by profit-taking after its recent run-up. The benchmark Hang Seng index three percent lower at 17211 points. And another down day in Korea as well, after yesterday's near five percent plunge. The Kospi index closing nearly 1 1/2 percent lower as investors fretted about the lack of news on the long-awaited restructuring package for the country's biggest conglomerate, Hyundai. They were the main markets to move today, but business news here overshadowed by a Malaysian court's decision to jail former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to nine years prison after being found guilty of sodomy. Anwar is already serving six years for corruption in Malaysia. He has repeatedly claimed that the charges are a political conspiracy planned by the prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad. Anwar's lawyers say they will appeal this latest verdict. And that is the news here. David, Deborah, back to you.</s>MARCHINI: Andrew Stevens, live from Hong Kong, thanks.
Asian Markets Lag; Interest Rate Fight Goes Public in Tokyo