Asian shares rose on Thursday,
with recovering commodities and views that a run of weak global economic data
will encourage major central banks to keep or deepen their monetary stimulus
improving risk sentiment, but weak data undermined the dollar. European stock
markets were seen subdued, with financial spreadbetters predicting London's
FTSE 100 .FTSE, Paris's CAC-40 .FCHI and Frankfurt's DAX .GDAXI would open
narrowly mixed between a 0.1 percent rise and a 0.1 percent drop. U.S. stock
futures ESc1 were up 0.1 percent, hinting at a calm Wall Street open. MSCI's
broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.7
percent, with Hong Kong shares .HSI rising 1.1 percent and hitting a three-week
high, spurred by recovering commodity prices and positive quarterly earnings
from China Minsheng Bank, the country's seventh-largest lender.
South Korean
shares .KS11 gained 0.4 percent as metals and chemicals rebounded on higher
gold and oil prices, taking in their stride earnings from Hyundai Motor Co
005380.KS which showed a 15 percent fall in its quarterly net profit, broadly
in line with forecasts. Early on Thursday, South Korea said its economy grew a
seasonally adjusted 0.9 percent in the January-March period from the previous
quarter, the fastest in two years and far above market expectations. The
surprising growth dented expectations for a rate cut by the Bank of Korea. Adrian
Foster, head of financial markets research for Asia-Pacific at Rabobank
International in Hong Kong , said the main
factor behind an improved tone in the region was the recent rally in the
peripheral European government bond market which reflected waning fears about a
euro zone implosion.
"We've already been seeing the market evolve from the
European crisis to focus more on specific issues in a country or events,"
he said, adding that it was a positive development that investors were
reverting to behaviour seen before the financial crisis. U.S. equities
were also underpinned by earnings prospect despite recent soft economic
reports, with 68.4 percent of the 174 companies in the S&P 500 index that
already have reported results exceeding analysts' expectations, according to
Thomson Reuters data through Wednesday morning. The euro zone debt crisis has
taken a toll on the European economy but that has simultaneously strengthened
the case for more easing, raising expectations of a rate cut by the European
Central Bank when it meets next week.
Despite the rate cut speculation and weak
euro zone data, the euro EUR= was up 0.3 percent at $1.3050 and away from
Wednesday's three-week low of $1.2954. The resilience of the single currency
partly stemmed from falling yields in highly-indebted Italy and Spain
and hopes Italy
will break its political deadlock two months after an inconclusive election. The
ECB rate cut speculation also helped offset growth concerns highlighted by U.S. durable
goods posting their biggest drop in seven months in March and the Ifo survey
showing that German business sentiment in April fell further than the most
bearish forecasts. The U.S. Federal Reserve meets next week and is expected to
reaffirm its commitment to its bond-buying stimulus programme.
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