May 3 (Bloomberg) -- Shares of Asian computer-related companies rose on expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve will maintain its current pace of interest rate increases, raising optimism demand for companies such as Samsung Electronics Co. will be sustained.

``Asian stocks will benefit if the Fed keeps to the current rate,'' said Pang Shun-Pen, who helps manage $400 million in Asia outside Japan at HSZ Singapore Pte. ``Over the longer term, earnings growth will be generally positive.'' He declined to comment on his holdings.

Taiwan's Taiex rose 0.8 percent to 5865.16 at 11:37 a.m. in Taipei, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.3 percent, while Singapore's Straits Times Index gained 0.8 percent.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia Pacific excluding Japan Index, which tracks 600 stocks, was unchanged at 262.50. An industry group of computer-related stocks was the biggest gainer. Materials stocks were the biggest drag.

Japanese and Chinese markets were closed for public holidays. All other markets open rose, except in Australian and Indonesia.

The U.S. is the largest market for Asian products such as Samsung Electronics' semiconductors. The Institute for Supply Management's factory index released yesterday fell to 53.3 in April from 55.2, less than the reading of 55 expected by economists in a Bloomberg News survey.

``The report is positive in that the Federal Reserve is unlikely to accelerate the pace of interest-rate increases,'' said Kim Hak Kyun, a market analyst at Good Morning Shinhan Securities Co. in Seoul. ``The best-case scenario is a gradual increase.''

Fed Policy Makers

Samsung Electronics, South Korea's largest electronics maker and exporter, rose 0.8 percent to 459,000 won. Hynix Semiconductor Inc., the world's second-largest maker of memory chips, climbed 1.7 percent to 12,350 won.

Rinker Group Ltd., the largest maker of concrete building blocks in the U.S., rose 1.7 percent to A$11.51 in Sydney.

Federal Reserve policy makers are due to release their latest decision on interest rates later today. The central bank has lifted its key rate by a quarter point at each of the past seven meetings and has stuck to a plan of raising borrowing costs at a ``measured'' pace.

All 22 of Wall Street's biggest bond-trading firms surveyed by Bloomberg News expect another quarter-point increase to 3 percent. Of those primary dealers, five expect the Fed to drop its use of the word ``measured.''

The MSCI Asia Pacific excluding Japan Information Technology Index, which follows 73 computer-related stocks, added 0.5 percent.

Acer, Oil Producers

Acer, Taiwan's third-largest computer company by market value, rose 2.5 percent to NT$52.50. The company said after the market closed on April 29 that first-quarter profit rose 16 percent to NT$2.15 billion ($68 million). That beat analysts' estimates of NT$1.86 billion.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's largest supplier of made-to-order chips, jumped 1.9 percent to NT$52.90.

An index of energy stocks was the fourth-biggest contributor to the gains on MSCI's regional index after oil prices surged.

PetroChina Co., China's biggest oil producer, added 0.5 percent to HK$4.70 in Hong Kong. Woodside Petroleum Ltd. Australia's second-biggest oil producer, added 0.9 percent to A$23.80. Santos Ltd., the nation's third-biggest oil producer, gained 1.1 percent to A$9.31.

Most-active crude-oil futures in New York rose 2.4 percent to $50.92 a barrel after Algeria's energy minister Chakib Khelil said that global fuel demand remains ``very strong.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Darren Boey in Hong Kong at dboey@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: May 2, 2005 22:50 EDT