Tokyo  - Japan markets opened stronger on Monday, with stocks driven up by hope for the US economy to recover as president-elect Barack Obama Saturday pledged a large-scale spending plan.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average was up 203.2 points, or 2.57 per cent, to 8,120.71 by mid-trading, carrying over Friday's positive sentiment at Wall Street.

The broader Topix index of all first-section issues rose 11.34 points, or 1.44 per cent to 797.36.

All listed

Indian equities ended the week below 9,000 mark due to strong selling pressure witnessed across IT, consumer durable, oil & gas and metal stocks.

The 30-share index BSE Sensex, which opened with a loss of 25.06 points at 9,204.69, on Friday, rallied for a short time but profit booking at higher levels brought it back into the negative terrain.    

Among the sectoral indices, BSE Consumer durables and IT lost more than 4% each, Realty, Metal and Oil&gas declined over 3% each.   

BSE Midcap and Smallcap index lost 1.02% and 0.25% respectively.

New York  - Despite gloom on the labour and automotive fronts, US stocks gained Friday as Hartford Financial Services Group Inc increased its profit forecast and said it was weathering the credit crisis.

Tech stocks rallied 4.4 per cent on the Nasdaq Composite Index, the largest increase of the three major Wall Street markets.

NEW YORK, Dec. 5  -- U. S. stock indexes declined Friday after the Labor Department said unemployment had reached 6.7 percent in a recession now digging it its heels.

The U. S. employment picture includes 533,000 non-farm jobs lost in November, 403,000 lost in October and 320,000 in September, the department said.

In early afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 136.83 points, or 1.63 percent, to 8,239.41. The Standard and Poor's 500 fell 1.67 percent, 14.09 points, to
831.13. The Nasdaq composite index lost 15.85 points, 1.1 percent, to 1,429.71.

The benchmark 10-year U. S. Treasury bond fell 8/32 to yield 2.584 percent.

The Sensex slipped below 9,000-mark on account of continued buying action witnessed across board.

IT, consumer durable, oil & gas and metal stocks were hammered badly.
 
BSE Midcap and Smallcap index lost 0.75% and 0.08% respectively.

Among the sectoral indices, BSE IT declined 4.72%, Consumer durables plunged 4.16%, Oil & gas fipped 3.67% and Metal lost 3.42%.

The 30-share index, BSE Sensex, today (Dec 05, 2008), belled the day with a loss of 25.06 points at 9,204.69.