Italian navy says nearly 900 migrants rescued

ROME: Italy has rescued 896 migrants crossing the Mediterranean by boat in the past 24 hours, the navy said on Friday, after the government warned of an "emergency" caused by a surge in new arrivals.

Three navy warships and two coast guard patrol boats took on the migrants who are now being transferred to other vessels and taken to ports in Sicily for identification, the navy said in a statement.

The anti-immigration Northern League, a small but vociferous opposition party, has called for migrants to be sent back and, along with a series of far-right parties, accuses the government of failing to act.

Interior Minister Angelino Alfano has appealed for more assistance from the European Union but migrant rights campaigners say the real fault is with failures in Italy´s immigration and asylum system.

Activists say Italy´s immigration centres are full and asylum-seekers are being put up in temporary or private facilities like hotels which are not offering adequate assistance to the new arrivals.

Tokyo stocks fall nearly 3 percent in opening trade

TOKYO: Tokyo stocks lost nearly three percent in opening trade Friday, after New York shares suffered big losses on concerns about the valuations of high-flying technology companies.

The Nikkei 225 index lost 2.88 percent, or 411.32 points, to 13,888.80 in the first few minutes of trade.

"Japan stocks will fall in sympathy (Friday) with their overseas counterparts and there is increasing anxiety about a broader pullback in US shares after such a long run-up," said Tokai Tokyo Research Center senior global strategist Mutsumi Kagawa.

Anxiety about pricey technology stocks returned with a vengeance to Wall Street Thursday, sending the Nasdaq down more than 3.0 percent and sparking deep declines in the broader stock market.

The tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index tumbled 3.10 percent to 4,054.11, the biggest single-day drop in percentage terms since November 2011.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 1.62 percent to 16,170.22, while the broad-based S&P 500 fell 2.09 percent to 1,833.08.

The dollar weakened on Thursday as traders digested Federal Reserve signals suggesting that interest rates would be unlikely to rise any time soon.

The dollar was at 101.38 yen early Friday, hardly changed from 101.44 yen in New York Thursday afternoon but down from 101.81 yen in Tokyo earlier Thursday.

The euro slipped to 140.80 yen from 140.88 yen in US trade while buying $1.3885 compared with $1.3888.