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Nikkei down 1.1 pc as tech shares fall on Intel

Tokyo, July 18: Japan's Nikkei average lost 1.14 per cent on Wednesday with high-tech shares such as Tokyo Electron Ltd. losing ground after lacklustre results from Intel Corp., the largest maker of computer processors.

Shares of Tokyo Electric Power Co. Inc. (TEPCO) lost nearly 4 per cent after it said late on Tuesday it had found some 50 problems at its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture after a strong earthquake hit the area on Monday.

''Investors are locking in profits now, especially in tech stocks, expecting the U.S. market to go down overnight after Intel's results,'' said Norihiro Fujito, general manager at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities' investment research and information division.

He said U.S. subprime mortgage problems could also bring down the financial sector there after Bear Stearns said two hedge funds that bet heavily on risky subprime loans now have ''very little value'', adding to investor worries in Japan about on U.S.stock moves.

''But the Nikkei is unlikely to go below 18,000 as trade is cautious here before the election,'' Fujito said.

An election for half the seats in the upper house of Japan's parliament will be held on July 29, with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party seen faring poorly after funding scandals and voter anger over lost pension records.

The benchmark Nikkei average was down 207.64 points at 18,009.63 as of 0059 GMT.

The broader TOPIX index declined 1.25 per cent to 1,755.94.

Shares of high-tech stocks declined with Tokyo Electron down 0.9 per cent at 8,940 yen. Kyocera Corp. fell 1.8 per cent to 13,150 yen and Canon Inc. lost 1.5 per cent to 7,030 yen.

TEPCO was down 3.7 per cent at 3,610 yen.

Japan's trade minister had told TEPCO early on Tuesday it must delay restarting the Niigata nuclear plant, the world's largest, until its safety can be confirmed.

Reuters>

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