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Asian Stocks Gain as Australia Adds More Jobs, European Debt Concerns Ease
Asian stocks rose for the first time in three days after Australian employers added more workers than estimated and an improving appetite for European government debt eased concern over the region’s budget deficit crisis.
National Australia Bank Ltd. rallied 3.7 percent on optimism it won’t need to raise capital to finance a takeover. Canon Inc., which gets 32 percent of its sales in Europe, gained 1.1 percent and Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s largest automaker, rose 1.9 percent in Tokyo. SM Prime Holdings Inc., the Philippines’ biggest shopping mall operator, jumped 9.7 percent as a gain in the nation’s exports fueled economic growth prospects.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.9 percent to 121.49 as of 7:22 p.m. in Tokyo after a two-day, 1.2 percent decline. The measure has climbed 4.8 percent from a one-month low on Aug. 25 amid speculation the U.S. economy will avoid slipping back into recession.
“Some of the extreme bearishness of the past few weeks has been flowing out,” said Stephen Halmarick, who helps manage about $135 billion as head of investment markets research at Colonial First State Global Asset Management in Sydney. “The Australian employment numbers reinforce the message that the economy continues to do extraordinarily well compared to most other countries.”
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 0.8 percent and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 1 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.4 percent. The Philippine Stock Exchange Index jumped 2.6 percent to a record high after a government report showed the country’s exports rose for a ninth month.
Philippine Record
South Korea’s Kospi index added 0.3 percent, paring an earlier gain of 0.6 percent after the central bank unexpectedly left interest rates unchanged. China’s Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.4 percent, paced by real-estate developers amid concern the government will strengthen measures to curb speculation.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 0.3 percent. The gauge gained 0.6 percent yesterday amid evidence of improving demand for Portuguese and Polish bonds. The Federal Reserve also said the U.S. economy maintained its expansion while showing “widespread signs of a deceleration” in mid-July through the end of August, according to a survey by 12 regional Fed banks.
Stocks in Australia were bolstered by a report from the statistics bureau showing that the nation’s employers added 30,900 more workers in August from July. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for an increase of 25,000. The jobless rate fell to 5.1 percent from 5.3 percent.
Antitrust Regulators
Harvey Norman Holdings Ltd., Australia’s largest furniture and electrical retailer, climbed 1.4 percent to A$3.66 after the jobs report. JB Hi-Fi Ltd., an Australian electronics retailer, advanced 1.3 percent to A$21.81.
National Australia Bank rose 3.7 percent to A$24.84 in Sydney. Its proposed A$13.3 billion ($12.2 billion) takeover of asset manager Axa Asia Pacific Holdings Ltd. was blocked a second time by antitrust regulators, which said concessions by the lender didn’t go far enough to gain approval.
“There’s less chance they’ll pay too much to make an acquisition, and less chance of a dilutive capital raising to fund it,” said Angus Gluskie, who manages about $300 million at White Funds Management Pty in Sydney. Axa Asia shares slumped 6.6 percent to A$5.08.
A gauge of material stocks in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.4 percent, the most of 10 industry groups. The London Metal Exchange Index of six metals gained 0.9 percent yesterday, while crude-oil futures in New York rose 0.5 percent in after- hours trading, adding to yesterday’s 0.8 percent climb.
European Bond Sales
BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company, advanced 0.7 percent to A$38.18, while Rio Tinto Group, the third largest, increased 0.6 percent to A$73.90. Cnooc Ltd., China’s largest offshore oil producer, rose 1.6 percent to HK$13.70.
Concern that European governments will struggle to fund deficits diminished after a Portuguese sale of bonds due in 2021 drew bids for 2.6 times the amount offered, compared with 1.6 times in a March sale. A Polish auction of five-year debt attracted the strongest demand since 2008.
In Tokyo, Canon increased 1.1 percent to 3,550 yen. Toyota, which gets 8.5 percent of its revenue in Europe, climbed 1.9 percent to 2,930 yen. Fanuc Ltd., a robotics maker that generated 17 percent of its revenue in its last fiscal year in Europe, rose 1 percent to 9,550 yen.
“There is a sense of relief about Europe, so there is a temporary pause in risk aversion” said Mitsushige Akino,?who oversees about $450 million in Tokyo at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co.
Growth Concerns
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slumped as much as 5.3 percent from a three-month high on Aug. 6 as slower-than-estimated growth in U.S. incomes and a record plunge in the country’s home sales, fueled concerns about global economic growth. Stocks in the gauge are valued at an average 13.8 times estimated earnings, higher than the S&P 500 Index’s 13.2 times.
In Hong Kong, China Unicom (Hong Kong) Ltd. gained 3.6 percent to HK$11.50. Telefonica SA, Europe’s second-biggest phone company, said a plan to boost its stake in Unicom is unaffected by Vodafone Group Plc’s sale of its stake in China Mobile Ltd.
Trend Micro Inc., a Japanese maker of antivirus software, surged 10 percent to 2,576 yen in Tokyo, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index’s biggest gain. Taiwan’s DigiTimes reported the company had been approached for a possible takeover.
Trend Micro spokeswoman Junko Uehara said the company is looking into the report, declining to comment further.
Philippine Exports
In Manila, SM Prime surged 9.7 percent to 12.26 pesos on expectations faster economic growth will sustain earnings expansion. Ayala Land Inc., the country’s largest builder, climbed 8 percent to 18.70 pesos. The two stocks were among the top five advancers in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.
Philippine exports increased 35.9 percent from a year earlier in July as the global recovery sustained demand for the nation’s semiconductors and other electronics goods. President Benigno Aquino aims to expand the economy by 7 percent to 8 percent annually from 2011 to cut poverty and boost incomes.
“The market, especially foreign equity investors, has not appreciated the country’s reduced risk profile,” JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts led by Gilbert Lopez wrote in a report.
Chinese property developers fell after Jones Lang LaSalle Inc., the world’s second-largest publicly traded commercial property broker, said the government may further tighten anti- speculation measures.
Chinese Property Developers
China Vanke Co., the nation’s biggest listed property developer, dropped 3.4 percent to 8.28 yuan and Poly Real Estate Group Co., the second largest, fell 4.1 percent to 11.32 yuan.
The government is determined to see a decline in the nation’s residential property prices and may increase mortgage rates and cash down payments for home purchases if residential prices don’t decline, Colin Dyer, Jones Lang LaSalle’s chief executive officer, told Bloomberg News.
The 21st Century Business Herald reported yesterday that China may introduce a second-round of measures to curb the property market, including stopping loans to real estate developers and compulsory lowering of home prices.
To contact the reporter on this story: Shani Raja in Sydney at sraja4@bloomberg.net.
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