20 May 2009
May 20 (Bloomberg) -- Asian shares rose, pushing the MSCI Asia Pacific Index up for a second day, as oil traded above $60 a barrel and Goldman, Sachs & Co. upgraded its recommendations on Japanese trading houses and container shipping lines.Mitsubishi Corp., a trading house that gets more than half its profit from commodities, climbed 5.5 percent in Tokyo. China Shipping Container Lines Co., the country's No. 2 cargo-box carrier, jumped 5.6 percent in Hong Kong as Goldman Sachs said it was turning more positive on the transportation industry. Handset maker HTC Corp. surged 4.9 percent in Taipei, on optimism it will benefit from increased sales in Japan.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.5 percent to 99.84 at 2:10 p.m. in Tokyo, set for its highest close since Oct. 6. Through yesterday, the gauge had surged 41 percent from a more than five-year low on March 9.
"Risk appetite is coming back," Khiem Do, head of the multi-asset group at Baring Asset Management (Asia) Ltd. in Hong Kong, which oversees $7 billion, told Bloomberg Television today. "There's greater optimism about the green shoots of economic recovery around the world."
Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 0.5 percent to 9,334.81 as a government report showed the economy contracted an annualized 15.2 percent in the three months ended March 31, less than some economists predicted. Most markets rose, except for China, Pakistan and Hong Kong.
T&D Holdings Inc., Japan's biggest life insurer, slumped 14 percent after posting a wider-than-estimated full-year loss. Billabong International Ltd., Australia's largest surfwear maker, tumbled 16 percent after a share sale.
Brokerage Upgrade
Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index slipped 0.3 percent. The gauge dropped 0.2 percent in New York yesterday as a Commerce Department report showed housing starts sank 13 percent in April, while economists had expected an increase. Financial shares slumped after Moody's Investors Service said commercial property values have tumbled.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index had its biggest weekly decline in two months last week amid concern the rally since March had overpriced earnings prospects. Companies on the gauge are valued at an average 1.4 times the book value of assets, the highest since Oct. 3, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Crude oil for July delivery rose as much as 0.8 percent to $60.60 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after a U.S. industry report showed crude inventories declined and a fire at a Texas refinery curbed production. Crude closed at the highest since Nov. 10 yesterday.
Mitsubishi jumped 5.5 percent to 1,753 yen in Tokyo. Mitsui & Co., Mitsubishi's closest rival, added 5.8 percent to 1,175 yen. Goldman Sachs raised its view on Japan's trading houses to "attractive" from "neutral." The brokerage upgraded Mitsubishi to "buy" from "neutral."
Shipping Lines
"Demand for resources looks likely to rebound and investors are willing to buy commodity-related companies on expectations for an earnings recovery," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager at Nikko Cordial Securities Co.
China Shipping Container Lines jumped 5.6 percent to HK$2.25. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Japan's No. 2 shipping company, gained 2.7 percent to 637 yen. Pacific Basin Shipping Ltd., Hong Kong's largest operator of commodity vessels, added 1.8 percent to HK$4.66.
Goldman Sachs raised its rating on the container-ship industry to "attractive" from "neutral" and upgraded Mitsui O.S.K. to "buy" from "neutral." The brokerage lifted its share-price forecast for Pacific Basin by 20 percent.
Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd., Japan's No. 3 shipping line, added 3.4 percent to 399 yen. The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping costs for commodities, jumped for a 13th-straight session to a level not seen since Oct. 8.
T&D, Billabong
HTC climbed 4.9 percent to NT$513. The stock surged 6.3 percent yesterday after NTT DoCoMo Inc., Japan's largest mobile- phone operator, said that it plans to sell a HTC handset that uses Google Inc.'s Android software in Japan.
"The DoCoMo sale does help," said Kevin Chang, an analyst at Citigroup Inc. "More importantly, with Taiwan's bull market, investors are looking for tech shares to buy." Taiwan's Taiex Index surged 16 percent in the month through yesterday amid optimism closer ties with China will boost economic growth.
T&D Holdings slumped 14 percent to 2,800 yen. The company reported a loss of 89.1 billion yen ($931 million) in the 12 months ended March 31, compared with a 36.7 billion yen profit the previous year. Nomura Holdings Inc. downgraded T&D's stock to "reduce" from "buy" after the results, which compared with a February forecast for an 84 billion yen loss.
Australia's Billabong tumbled 16 percent to A$8.50. The company sold about A$230 million ($177 million) in new stock to institutional holders at A$7.50 a share.
