Asian stocks rose for the first time in a week and U.S. futures surged on speculation an emergency package to bail out debt-laden European countries will contain the region’s credit crisis.
Esprit Holdings Ltd., which gets 85 percent of its revenue from Europe, advanced 3.6 percent in Hong Kong as European policy makers unveiled an unprecedented loan package of almost $1 trillion alongside securities purchases. Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the nation’s biggest bank by market value, gained 5.2 percent. Rio Tinto Group, the world’s third-largest mining company, rose 5.9 percent in Sydney as copper climbed. Bridgestone Corp. increased 4.7 percent in Tokyo after the tiremaker boosted its profit forecast.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.5 percent to 120.23 as of 3:44 p.m. in Tokyo, headed to its biggest gain since April 26. Three times as many stocks advanced as declined. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 3.7 percent, as the European Central Bank said it will intervene in public and private bond markets to help stave off a sovereign-debt crisis.
“A coordinated effort by ECB and the EU member nations is exactly what was needed to bring back stability and order,” said Prasad Patkar, who helps manage $1.7 billion in Sydney at Platypus Asset Management Ltd. “This may well end the crisis in Europe for now as the fears of policy inertia from disunity and domestic political priorities of the member nations recede.”
Jolted into action by last week’s slide in the euro to a 14-month low and soaring bond yields in Portugal and Spain, governments of the 16 euro nations agreed to make loans of as much as 750 billion euros ($962 billion) available to countries under attack from speculators.
Asia, U.S., Europe
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 2.7 percent, the biggest increase in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 1.6 percent, South Korea’s Kospi increased 1.8 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 2.3 percent.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell every day last week and erased its gains for the year as concern mounted that countries in addition to Greece will struggle to repay their debt. The price of stocks in the gauge sank to 15 times estimated earnings on average on May 7, the lowest level since January 2009.
The Nikkei 225 declined 6.3 percent during the two days Japan’s markets were open last week, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 lost 10 percent from a 19-month high on April 15 to May 7.
Debt Crisis
The S&P 500 fell 1.5 percent in New York on May 7 after concern Europe’s debt crisis is worsening triggered a plunge that undermined confidence in financial trading mechanisms.
Concern Europe’s debt crisis will swell bank losses and halt the global recovery sent the MSCI Asia Pacific Index down 8.3 percent in three weeks, led by a 12 percent drop in commodity shares and an 11 percent slide in financial companies.
European leaders are displaying “a new unity that wasn’t found about say two months ago,” Tan Teng Boo, who oversees $300 million as managing director at iCapital Global Fund, said in a Bloomberg Television interview.
HSBC Earnings
Esprit Holdings advanced 3.6 percent to HK$51.45 in Hong Kong. Cosco Pacific Ltd., which took over some operations in Greece’s Piraeus port last year, climbed 3.5 percent to HK$9.75. HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s biggest bank, rose 3.9 percent to HK$76.40 after saying first-quarter earnings exceeded their level in the same period in 2009.
Commonwealth Bank climbed 5.2 percent to A$55.75 in Sydney, after Credit Suisse Group AG raised the stock to “outperform” from “neutral.” Westpac Banking Corp., Australia’s second- largest bank by market capitalization, gained 3.5 percent to A$25.01.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan’s biggest bank by market value, climbed 1.7 percent to 468 yen, and Nomura Holdings Inc., the country’s largest brokerage, gained 1.6 percent to 618 yen. KB Financial Group Inc., the owner of South Korea’s No. 1 bank, rallied 5.4 percent to 51,200 won.
“The European Union seems to have finally got the message and is starting to move decisively,” said Shane Oliver, Sydney- based head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors, which oversees about $90 billion. “Whether it’s ultimately enough remains to be seen, but the package is a huge step in the right direction.”
Commodities Advance
Rio Tinto rose 5.9 percent to A$68.80 in Sydney, while BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, increased 4 percent to A$39. Mitsubishi Corp., a Japanese commodities trading company, advanced 2.3 percent to 2,129 yen in Tokyo. Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd., the nation’s biggest producer of the metal, gained 3.7 percent to HK$7.23 in Hong Kong.
Crude oil, copper, and aluminum climbed on speculation the emergency package will bolster a global economic recovery. Oil soared 2.7 percent to $77.12 a barrel, the biggest intraday increase since April 29, copper surged 2.1 percent to $7,092 per metric ton and aluminum gained 3.3 percent to $2,140 a ton.
“People have been selling risky assets for the past several weeks because of the Greek debts,” said Tetsu Emori, a commodity fund manager with Astmax Ltd. in Tokyo. “The people that were selling off are now buying back.”
Bridgestone rose 4.7 percent to 1,634 yen. The tiremaker more than doubled its first-half profit forecast to 27 billion yen ($292 million) from 11 billion yen, citing rising sales and better efficiency.
Also in Tokyo, Minebea Co. surged 7 percent to 566 yen after the maker of ball bearings said net income for the year ended March 31 jumped to 6.66 billion yen from 2.44 billion yen a year earlier, and forecast profit will rise 88 percent this fiscal year.
In Sydney, Incitec Pivot Ltd., Australia’s largest maker of fertilizer, advanced 4.6 percent to A$3.18, after saying fiscal first-half profit jumped 33 percent from a year earlier, when earnings were reduced by one-time expenses.Make yourself heard
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