The Swiss market index closed at 5,650.5 points, up 10.2 or 0.18 percent. MILAN - The All Share Mibtel index closed at 23,133 points, up 53 or 0.23 percent. TOKYO - The Nikkei average closed lower, ending a three-day winning streak as profit-taking hit Toyota Motor and other exporters that had benefited from gains on Wall Street and a weaker yen. The Nikkei average ended down 0.29 percent or 32.09 points at 10,924.37. HONG KONG - Hong Kong blue chip stocks fell nearly 0.4 percent as the legal wrangling over the city's first and world's biggest real estate investment trust IPO dragged on, dealing a blow to market sentiment. Ending two straight sessions of gains, the blue-chip Hang Seng Index lost 53.91 points to close at 14,024.63. SYDNEY - Australian shares finished 0.8 percent firmer, surging toward the 4000 mark as funds shifting out of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. moved into other heavyweight Australian stocks ahead of the media giant's entry into the U.S. S&P 500 index. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 31.0 points to close at 3,975.1. JOHANNESBURG - The market was closed on Thursday for the local Reconciliation Day holiday. South African stocks had closed on Wednesday a little higher. The All-share index closed at 12,265.32 points, up 45.73, the All Gold index closed at 1,671.31 points, up 12.63 and the Industrial index closed at 9,431.64 points, up 48.18. --SP 2204 Local Time 1904 GMT
