Asian Stocks Rise as Commodity Firms Gain; Korea Climbs as Tension Eases

Asian stocks rose as commodity prices advanced and a Federal Reserve official said U.S. economic growth next year may be stronger than some economists forecast, boosting confidence in a global economic recovery.

Komatsu Ltd., the world’s second-biggest maker of earthmoving machines, gained 1 percent Tokyo. BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s No. 1 mining company and Australia’s top oil producer, climbed 0.9 percent in Sydney today. Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co. advanced 4 percent in Seoul after parent Hyundai Group’s bid to buy South Korea’s largest builder collapsed.

“Consensus is forming that the global economy is gradually getting better,” said Kenichi Hirano, general manager and strategist at Tachibana Securities Co. “Growth in the world economy is boosting commodity prices, and surplus money is going into commodities and stocks.”

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.3 percent to 133.73 as of 9:51 a.m. in Tokyo, with three stocks increasing for each that fell. The gauge climbed to a 2 1/2-year intraday high on Dec. 14 as U.S. economic reports boosted confidence in a global recovery, easing concerns that Europe’s debt crisis and China’s measures to slow inflation will hurt growth.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 0.6 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.5 percent and New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index both increased 0.3 percent.

South Korea’s Kospi Index gained 0.8 percent as tensions on the Korean peninsula eased after the North did not retaliate to military drills on a disputed island.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index were little changed today. The index climbed 0.3 percent yesterday in New York as Barclays Plc raised its share-price estimate on Amazon.com Inc. and energy shares rallied. The index is near its closing level on Sept. 12, 2008, the last trading day before the bankruptcy filing of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

U.S. Data ‘Bodes Well’

Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said provision of stimulus is “reviewable and changeable” depending on economic growth, which may be stronger next year than some economists forecast. Bullard said in an interview with CNBC yesterday that while Europe’s fiscal crisis is “very serious” and may continue for “quite a while,” recent U.S. economic data “bodes well” for 2011.

Crude oil for January delivery increased 79 cents to settle at $88.81 a barrel in New York yesterday on speculation U.S. economic growth will accelerate next year, bolstering demand in the world’s biggest oil-consuming country. The London Metal Exchange Index of six metals including copper and aluminum climbed 1.1 percent yesterday, rising for second day.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 11 percent this year through yesterday, compared with gains of 12 percent by the S&P 500 and 9.6 percent by the Stoxx Europe 600 Index. Stocks in the Asian benchmark were valued at 14.7 times estimated earnings on average at yesterday’s close, versus 14.6 times for the S&P 500 and 12.3 times for the Stoxx 600.