2011年4月22日星期五

Asia Stocks Swing between earnings, losses to the Renesas plant restart

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April 22, 2011, 3:25 AM EDT By Anna Kitanaka and Kana Nishizawa

April 22 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks swung between gains and losses as Japanese chip and automakers rose as a key supplier started production. Japan’s bond futures climbed as Prime Minister Naoto Kan compiled an extra budget to fund reconstruction from the country’s worst earthquake without selling more debt.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed at 138.75 at 3:54 p.m. in Tokyo, after earlier falling as much as 0.4 percent. Renesas Electronics Corp., a chipmaker which supplies the country’s carmakers, jumped as much as 6.2 percent after saying it will restart operations at a quake-halted plant. Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s biggest carmaker, rose 3.1 percent. Gold for immediate delivery rose to a record, while spot silver was little changed, trading near its 31-year high. Rubber rose as much as 3.1 percent in Tokyo.

“It’s a difficult environment for investors to take a proactive stance right now,” said Yoshinori Nagano, a senior strategist in Tokyo at Daiwa Asset Management Co., which oversees about $104 billion. “There are still a lot of uncertainties for the global economy.”

Almost as many shares rose as fell on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which is on course for a 2.2 percent gain this week, reversing last week’s declines.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average was little changed, erasing an earlier drop of as much as 0.8 percent, while the broader Topix index rose 0.1 percent. China’s Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index retreated 0.5 percent. Taiwan’s Taiex index climbed 0.1 percent. South Korea’s Kospi Index was little changed.

Market Holiday Closures

Markets in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India and the Philippines are closed for a holiday.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.8 percent this year through yesterday, compared with gains of 6.3 percent by the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index and of 1.7 percent by the Stoxx Europe 600 Index. Stocks in the Asian benchmark are valued at 13.3 times estimated earnings on average as of the last close, compared with 13.7 times for the S&P 500 and 11.3 times for the Stoxx 600.

Chipmakers and car manufacturers were the biggest boosts to Japan’s Topix index, and a gauge of consumer discretionary shares, which includes Toyota and Honda Motor Co. as its members, advanced 0.7 percent, the biggest gain among the 10 industry groups on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.

Restarting Operations

Renesas Electronics advanced 1.4 percent in Tokyo after earlier rising as much as 6.2 percent and reversing an earlier decline of as much as 3.1 percent, after announcing plans to restart operations at its quake-halted Naka plant in Ibaraki prefecture. Toyota jumped 3.1 percent, Honda rose 2.3 percent and Nissan Motor Co. gained 3.6 percent. All three carmakers reversed earlier declines and were the biggest positive supports to the MSCI Asia Pacific Index.

“Renesas’ production restart is good news for the market,” said Tsutomu Yamada, a market analyst at Kabu.com Securities Co. in Tokyo. “It’s good for semiconductors and also for carmakers. Investors are looking forward to the supply chain getting back to normal.”

Advantest Profits

Also in Tokyo, Advantest Corp., the world’s biggest maker of memory-chip testers, rose 0.8 percent after the Nikkei newspaper said the company’s operating profit may have gained. Yaskawa Electric Corp. jumped 7.3 percent after Credit Suisse Group AG boosted its investment rating on the motor maker.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan’s biggest listed lender, climbed 0.3 percent after Morgan Stanley agreed to convert most of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc.’s preferred stock in the company, paying a premium of about $2 billion.

Japanese bonds rose, sending 10-year yields to a four-week low, on prospects the first spending package for rebuilding from last month’s record earthquake may not worsen the nation’s debt burden after saying it won’t issue new bonds.

Ten-year yields reached the lowest in four weeks on prospects that the first spending package for rebuilding from last month’s record earthquake and tsunami may not worsen the nation’s debt burden.

The yield on the 1.3 percent bond due March 2021 fell one basis point to 1.22 percent at Japan Bond Trading Co., the nation’s largest interdealer debt broker, the lowest since March 25. A basis point is 0.01 of a percentage point.

Respect Fiscal Discipline

“People are finding it favorable that policy makers are at least talking about tax increases and trying to respect” fiscal discipline, said Shinichi Horikawa, who helps to manage the equivalent of $12 billion at Mitsui Sumitomo Kirameki Life Insurance Co.

Treasuries in the U.S. rose for a second week as investors speculated that efforts to cut the Federal budget deficit may damp economic growth and awaited a policy statement next week from the Federal Reserve.

Two-year note yields dropped three basis points, or 0.03 percentage point, to 0.66 percent in New York, from 0.69 percent on April 15, according to Bloomberg Bond Trader prices. Ten-year note yields fell to the lowest level in a month.

‘Getting off Low Levels’

“You are looking at an economy that’s just getting off low levels,” said David Coard, head of fixed-income trading in New York at Williams Capital Group, a brokerage for institutional investors. “The market is looking for guidance from the FOMC. We’re looking for clues as to when the Fed may possibly begin to change course with respect to monetary policy.”

The euro strengthened toward a 16-month high before reports forecast to show French business confidence was at a three-year high and Italian retail sales rebounded, adding to signs the region’s recovery is picking up.

The euro traded at $1.4567 as of 1:46 p.m. in Tokyo from $1.4552 yesterday, when it climbed to $1.4649, the highest level since December 2009. The common currency bought 119.28 yen from 119.11 yen. The dollar was at 81.89 yen from 81.85 yen yesterday, when it fell to 81.62 yen, the weakest level since March 29.

“The eurozone’s recovery looks solid,” said Hitoshi Asaoka, senior strategist in Tokyo at Mizuho Trust & Banking Co., a unit of Japan’s second-largest bank. “As long as inflation is on the upside, market expectations for European Central Bank rate hikes will likely persist, which is euro-supportive.”

French Sentiment

A French index of sentiment among factory executives was unchanged from March at 109 in April, the highest since March 2008, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists before today’s report. Sales at Italian retailers rose 0.2 percent in February from the prior month, when they fell 0.3 percent, another Bloomberg survey showed before today’s data.

In China, shares declined on concern inflation won’t ease until the second half of the year and that higher material prices may curb earnings growth. The central bank raised the reserve ratio for banks on April 17, less than two weeks after an interest rate increase. The bank has raised banks’ reserve- requirement ratio 10 times since the start of 2010 and interest rates four times.

China Vanke Co. dropped 1.5 percent in Shenzhen and Poly Real Estate Group Co. slipped 0.6 percent in Shanghai. The largest property developers slid after the People’s Daily, a newspaper published by the central bank, said inflation will face “relatively large upward pressure” in the first six months and the central government is very firm on its attitude towards property control even though the task is arduous.

Yuan Forwards

Shenzhen Development Bank Co. declined 1.4 percent after saying it aims to sell up to 4 billion yuan ($614 million) of bonds.

Yuan forwards traded at the biggest premium to the spot rate in more than five months, reflecting speculation the central bank will allow faster currency gains to help tame inflation.

“Uncertainty over further tightening measures is growing in the market and leading to fluctuations,” said Li Jun, a strategist at Central China Securities Co. in Shanghai. “The government won’t take their hands off property investment controls until they see a real drop in prices.”

Gold, Silver, Rubber

Gold for immediate delivery reached an all-time high of $1,510.32 an ounce, and the price of the precious metal is up 1.3 percent this week. Futures for June delivery yesterday touched a record $1,509.60 on the Comex in New York.

Silver for immediate delivery was little changed at $46.6225 an ounce after yesterday jumping to $46.6925, the highest price since 1980. The metal has climbed about 8.5 percent this week, heading for a fifth weekly advance.

Rubber for September-delivery contract advanced as much as 3.1 percent to 425 yen per kilogram on concerns that demand may outpace supply during the low-production season in Southeast Asia.

The cost of protecting corporate bonds from non-payment in Japan was little changed, according to traders of credit-default swaps. The Markit iTraxx Japan index stood at 126 basis points, in line with its level the previous day, according to Deutsche Bank AG.

--With assistance from Norie Kuboyama, Satoshi Kawano, Yoshiaki Nohara and Yusuke Miyazawa in Tokyo, Sungwoo Park in Seoul, Irene Shen in Shanghai and James Regan in Hong Kong, Supunnabul Suwannakij in Bangkok, Susanne Walker in New York. Editors: Nick Gentle, Patrick Chu

To contact the reporters on this story: Anna Kitanaka in Tokyo at akitanaka@bloomberg.net; Kana Nishizawa in Tokyo at knishizawa5@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at ngentle2@bloomberg.net.


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