Asian stocks rose to a two-month high after the International Monetary Fund said it plans to expand its lending resources to counter Europe’s debt crisis and confidence among U.S. homebuilders increased. Oil climbed after U.S. crude stockpiles fell the most in six weeks.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) advanced 0.6 percent as of 9:38 a.m. in Tokyo, poised for the highest close since Nov. 9. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rallied 1 percent, while Standard & Poor’s 500 futures were little changed. Oil for February delivery gained 0.8 percent. South Korea’s won rose against all of its 16 major counterparts. Gold fell for the first time in four days, retreating 0.1 percent to $1,657.77.
“We see an improvement not only in manufacturing and labor data, but also in the sluggish housing market, boosting confidence for the U.S. economic outlook,” said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees about $600 million in Tokyo at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “It’s good that the IMF is also enhancing the safety net for European financial firms.”
China’s central bank is allowing a limited increase in first-quarter lending by the five biggest banks and the nation’s banking regulator is weighing a plan to relax capital requirements, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Increased lending in the world’s second-largest economy is helping sustain global growth as tax increases and government spending cuts curb demand in Europe.
Confidence among U.S. homebuilders rose in January to the highest level in more than four years. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo sentiment gauge increased to 25 this month, exceeding the median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.
(source: Bloomberg)
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19/01/2012 09:11:30 AM | 