Domestic concerns and renewed worries over a possible devaluation of the Chinese yuan dogged sentiment elsewhere. Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul and Taipei ended in the red. Sony led the Tokyo market ahead along with other blue chips, brokers said. The key Nikkei stock average of 225 leading issues surged 383.30 points to end at 15,480, the highest closing since August 10.

``The market carried over yesterday's bullish tone although we had no big fresh incentive for buying,'' said Yasuo Ueki, manager at Nikko Securities Co Ltd's financial product division. The Nikkei jumped 2.1 per cent Tuesday, finishing above the 15,000 mark for the firsttime since November last year.

``Sony stood as the market leader, with buying spilling over to other major issues that had lagged behind in the recent uptrend,'' Ueki said. The market was yet to swallow `the shock' of Sony's drastic group reorganisation plan to the full extent, he said, adding investors `felt safe to buy as long as Sony kept steam.'

``In other words, they should be careful if Sony loses momentum,'' he added. The Topix index of all first-section shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange closed up 24.96 points at 1,187.47 with turnover estimated at 982 million shares against Tuesday's 594.9 million shares.

Tatsuo Kurokawa, a senior market analyst at Nomura Securities Co Ltd, said: ``Investors chased gains among high-tech issues as they reacted very positively on Sony's announcement yesterday.''

Hong Kong: Hong Kong stocks closed 2.1 per cent higher as retail and institutional investors engaged in rotational buying of bluechips, said dealers. The key Hang Seng Index closed up 216.06points at 10,749.01, extending a 2.6-per cent gain the previous day. ``The rally is continuing with rotational buying of blue chips. This was led by the sharp rise in the Tokyo stock market. Furthermore, the local economy does not seem to be deteriorating further,'' said Antony Mak, sales director at Vickers Ballas.

Singapore: Singapore share prices closed 2 per cent higher on renewed interest in property and banking stocks. The buying was spurred by the sale of Indonesia's Salim group of a 23 per cent stake in holding company United Industrial Corp Ltd. (UIC) to Hong Kong-listed HKR International for 310 million dollars (179 million US).

``There is not much buying from institutions. It's mostly retail interest and traders, but the interest in UIC has lifted the market,'' a local broker said. The benchmark Straits Times Index rose 29.01 points to 1,469.53, while the broader All-Singapore index rose 6.30 points to 394.03.

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian share prices ended 5 per cent lower due toselling by Local and foreign institutions ahead of a key state election. ``Profit-taking dominated play in late afternoon ahead of the Sabah-stat election,'' an institutional trader with a local brokerage said. The dealer said investors took profits after Tuesday's rise as they did not want to take a chance ahead of the March 12 and 13 polls whose outcome is uncertain.

Bangkok: Thai shares rose 1.1 per cent as speculative buying in the banking sector reversed earlier losses, dealers said. Dealers said concerns over delays in the passage of economic legislation undermined the market for most of the day but bargain hunting emerged in the afternoon session.

``Investors speculated that the 11 key economic bills will be approved into law soon after the reports that the cabinet agreed to extend the current parliament session which ends March 22,'' one analyst said. The bills, including new bankruptcy rules, are considered crucial to economic recovery but have been delayed by opposition from thesenate.

Jakarta:

Jakarta shares closed 1.5 per cent down but off their lows amid a late technical rebound in select big caps led by Telkom, dealers said. An analyst with a local brokerage said the index fell to a low of 370 points before late buyers moved in. The Jakarta Stock Exchange composite price index closed 5.619 points lower at 373.802, off a low of 370.64.

Seoul: South Korean share prices closed 0.6 per cent lower on futures-linked selling one day before the expiry of March contracts, dealers said. They said the market opened weaker on renewed concerns over a yuan devaluation and the steep fall in the Shanghai market in the wake of the speculation.