Oct. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose, led by exporters including Canon Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co., after the dollar strengthened, boosting the value of their overseas sales.

This ``is extremely positive in terms of dollar-based revenue,'' said Yoji Takeda, who oversees $300 million as head of Asian equities at RBC Investment Management (Asia) Ltd. in Hong Kong. ``We can expect some upward revisions in exporters' earnings, so there should be some more upside on the shares.''

The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index, tracking more than 1,000 companies, added 0.5 percent to 113.09 as of 1:45 p.m. in Tokyo. The benchmark rose for the first day in three. A measure of technology shares had the biggest gain among the index's 10 industry groups after a report showed global semiconductor sales are ``on pace'' for a record in 2005.

Stock indexes around the region gained, except in Thailand and the Philippines. The Jakarta Composite Index jumped 2.1 percent in Indonesia, the region's biggest advance. India's Sensex index climbed to a record. Markets in China are closed this week for a holiday.

Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 1 percent to 13,663.32. Nissan Motor Co. and Honda Motor Co. climbed after leading market-share gains in the U.S. among Asian automakers last month on demand for smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles.

The dollar rose to 114.38 yen in New York, a 16-month high, and recently traded at 114.07 yen. The won fell 0.1 percent to 1,041.7 against the dollar, headed for its lowest since July 20, according to Seoul Money Brokerage Services Ltd.

Dollar Strength

The Bloomberg JPMorgan Asia Dollar Index, which tracks the value of currencies including the South Korean won and Singapore dollar against their U.S. counterpart, fell to a three-month low yesterday.

Canon, the world's largest maker of copiers, climbed 3.2 percent to 6,420 yen. Canon, which had almost 75 percent of its sales from overseas last year, based its full-year forecasts for 2005 on an average rate of 103 yen per dollar.

Samsung Electronics, South Korea's largest exporter, rose 3.1 percent to 606,000 won. The company accounts for about 10 percent of the nation's exports.

The Kospi index jumped 1.6 percent. A government report on Oct. 1 showed that South Korea's exports rose 18.7 percent to a record in September, the fastest pace in 10 months, because of an increase in shipments of semiconductors, machinery goods and electric appliances.

``The economic recovery is gaining strength as seen by the growth in exports and this is good for buying stocks,'' said Kim Seong Ki, who oversees $800 million as chief investment officer at Chohung Investment Trust Management Co. in Seoul. ``A weaker won provides a positive environment for exporters' earnings.''

Hana Bank, South Korea's fourth-largest lender, surged 10 percent to a record 42,350 won. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said it will invest about $500 million to become its biggest shareholder.

Chip Rebound?

Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd., Southeast Asia's largest supplier of made-to-order computer chips, added 1.7 percent to S$1.17. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose 2.1 percent to NT$53.90.

Worldwide semiconductor sales climbed 1.7 percent to $18.6 billion in August from a year earlier and are ``on pace'' for a record in 2005, the Semiconductor Industry Association said. Gains were led by a surge in sales in Asia, the report showed.

``Semiconductor sales were helped by cellular phone and notebook computer demand,'' said Belinda Yu, head of fund management at Jih Sun Securities Investment Trust Co. in Taipei, which manages $2.6 billion in assets.

Shares of Nissan, Japan's second-largest carmaker, rose 1.8 percent to 1,332 yen. Honda, Japan's third-largest carmaker, advanced 2.8 percent to 6,690 yen.

Nissan's sales rose 16 percent, while Honda's climbed 12 percent, according to Autodata Corp. Toyota Motor Corp., the No. 1 Asian automaker, had a 10 percent increase in sales.

Indonesia

Indonesian stocks climbed after a gain in the rupiah against the dollar suggested that investors are confident a move to cut fuel subsidies will leave the government with more money to boost the economy.

``It's a positive move by the government,'' said Alvin Pattisahusiwa, who helps manage about $195 million at Fortis Investments Indonesia in Jakarta. ``It will create budget sustainability and macroeconomic stability.''

PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia, or Telkom, the nation's biggest telephone company, added 2.8 percent to 5,450 rupiah. PT Indosat, the second-biggest, climbed 4.6 percent to 5,700 rupiah.

The rupiah gained 0.3 percent to 10,265 against the dollar as of 10:07 a.m. in Jakarta.

Elsewhere in the region, Trend Micro Inc. jumped 9 percent to 3,760. Japan's biggest antivirus software maker may report a 20 percent increase in sales for the three months ended in September, Makoto Ueno, a Tokyo-based analyst at Daiwa Institute of Research, wrote in a note to clients yesterday. The stock had the biggest percentage gain in the MSCI World Index.

To contact the reporters on this story: Michael Tsang in Tokyo at mtsang1@bloomberg.net; George Hsu in Taipei at georgehsu@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: October 4, 2005 00:50 EDT