Sanyo Electric led the decliners in the Nikkei 225 stocks with a retreat of 6.59% followed by losses in Marubeni Corporation of 3.12%, in Chugai Pharmaceuticals of 3%, and Dowa Holdings of 2.99%.

Sanyo Electric Company fell after the Tokyo Stock Exchange placed a special monitoring status on the company’s shares with a possible delisting. The company reported Tuesday that it will review its earnings as back as 2000 and will report 6 billion yen in losses from April 2000 through to September 2007.

In addition, the Mainichi news, an online edition, reported that Japan’s Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission has accused Sanyo of fraudulent earnings and urged the Financial Services Agency to impose 8.3 billion yen fine.

Financial stocks also fell on Nikkei news reports Japan’s five largest lenders paid customers 260 billion yen in the year to November for excessive interest rates, adding the figure might rise to 300 billion yen by the end of the year.

Also S&P/Case Shiller home price index reported yesterday that home prices fell 6.1% in October in twenty U.S. metropolitan areas. The narrow index includes cities like Las Vegas, Miami, and San Diego that have recently seen excessive speculation in housing market. Broader indexes that measure home prices across the nation have declined but not that sharply. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group plunged 1.28%, Mizuho Financial Group tumbled 1.43% and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group dropped 0.69%.

Kyodo news reported on Tuesday that subscribers of Softbank’s discount White Plan for mobile telephone services has crossed 10 million, which accounts for 60% of the company’s subscriber base.

Bloomberg news reported today that Samsung Electronics is suing Sharp Corporation for the alleged infringement of four U.S. patents for technology used in television and computer monitors.

3:50AM New York, 7:50PM Sydney – Mining stocks closed higher on takeover talks and rising demand from China.


ASX 200 index gained 0.4% or 27.3 to close at 6,350.90.


The preliminary market turnover in today’s session was 368.1 million shares worth $1.193 billion with 506 stocks rising, 423 closing lower, and 254 unchanged. Flinders Diamonds was the most active stocks with 21 million shares worth $2.04 million changing hands.

BHP Billiton added 1.4% and Rio Tinto rose 2.2%.

Australia''s second-largest medical centers operator, Primary Health Care Ltd extended its two weeks extension of its $2.1 billion ($1.8 billion) takeover bid for Symbion Health Ltd.

According to the company''s website the offer will now expire on January 21, 2008 instead of January 7. Primary holds a 35% stake in Symbion and a successful bid will see it becoming the largest health-care company in the country. Primary had in November offered $4.10 for each of the 80% of Symbion.

Symbion has 92 medical centers and 130 diagnostic imaging sites. Early this month, Healthscope, another shareholder said it is considering takeover bid for Symbion.

The announcement came two weeks after it scrapped its $2.8 billion cash and stock offer because of a tax ruling that reduced its value. Healthscope rose 0.2% and Symbion fell 0.3%.

Iron miner, Fortescue Metals Group Ltd''s ten-for-one share split, has to pay off for the company which has continued to dominate as the best performing member of the S&P/ASX 200 Index this year.

The iron-ore mining company has gained 19% since the split. On December 17, Chairman Herb Elliot said the split would improve liquidity and affordability.

Chief Executive Officer Andrew Forrest said the rise of the company''s stock by more than fivefold this year had boosted the fortune of largest shareholder.