Asian Technology Stocks Advance; Healthcare, Utilities Decline

March 26 (Bloomberg) -- Asian technology and finance stocks rose on better-than-expected U.S. economic reports. Healthcare and utility shares fell, led by Japanese companies trading without rights to their latest dividends.

Sony Corp., which earns a quarter of its sales from the U.S., advanced 6.7 percent in Tokyo after U.S. durable-goods orders rose the most in more than a year. Takeda Pharmaceutical Co., Asia’s biggest drugmaker, and Tokyo Electric Power Co., Japan’s largest power company, fell more than 2 percent in Tokyo as they went ex-dividend.

“The landslide-like deterioration of the global economy has halted,” Juichi Wako, a strategist at Tokyo-based Nomura Securities Co., said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “We’ve seen continued resilience in the market, but today there could be a pause in the rally.”

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.3 percent to 84.57 as of 10:33 a.m. in Tokyo. The index has climbed 20 percent from a five-year low on March 9 on speculation the worst of the financial crisis is over. The rally raised average valuations of companies on the gauge to 16.4 times profit, the highest level since Dec. 27, 2007, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Japan’s Topix Index fell 0.2 percent, the first decline in nine days. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.7 percent as the central bank said the country wasn’t at risk of a U.S.-style subprime crisis. All markets open for trading advanced except New Zealand and Malaysia.

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Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index climbed 0.8 percent today. The gauge gained 1 percent yesterday as government reports showed February orders for U.S. durable goods gained the most since December 2007, while sales of new homes increased last month from a record-low pace in January. Economists had expected both figures to decline.

Sony, world’s second-biggest maker of consumer electronics, climbed 6.7 percent to 2,200 yen. Merrill Lynch & Co. raised its recommendation on the stock to “buy” from “neutral,” saying the company’s reorganization would boost earnings.

Takeda dropped 2.2 percent to 3,600 yen. Tokyo Electric lost 2.7 percent to 2,520 yen. More than 2,800 Japanese companies trade without rights to a dividend today, weighing down the Nikkei by 74.23 points, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.