March 12 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose, sending the MSCI Asia Pacific to its third weekly advance, as the yen weakened on speculation Japan’s central bank will loosen monetary policies.
Honda Motor Co., a carmaker that gets about 45 percent of sales in North America, and Nissan Motor Co., which gets about 77 percent of its revenue outside Japan, climbed more than 1 percent in Tokyo. Hitachi Ltd. gained 1.5 percent after its incoming president said the unprofitable manufacturer’s performance will improve next fiscal year.
The Bank of Japan may seek to expand a 10 trillion-yen ($110 billion) fund that provides loans to banks in a March 16- 17 policy meeting, according to two central bank officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“The BOJ is increasingly seen as determined to beat deflation, and that’s propping up investor sentiment,” said Kenichi Hirano, general manager and strategist at Tokyo-based Tachibana Securities Co. “Further monetary easing will widen a gap in borrowing costs between Japan and other countries, which may lead to the yen’s depreciation.”
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.3 percent to 123.16 as of 9:30 a.m. in Tokyo, with twice as many shares advancing as declining.
The gauge has gained about 2.4 percent this week, set for a third weekly advance, as a lower-than-estimated U.S. unemployment rate boosted investor confidence in a U.S. economic recovery. Shares in the gauge trade at 19 times estimated earnings, compared with 15 times for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in the U.S. and 13 times for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index.
Nikkei Advances
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 0.8 percent to 10,748.45, the biggest advance among major Asia-Pacific benchmark indexes. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.4 percent. South Korea’s Kospi Index increased 0.5 percent.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell less than 0.1 percent. The gauge gained 0.4 percent yesterday in New York to the highest level since October 2008, as Citigroup Inc. led a bank rally and investors speculated that health-care reform will be harder to pass.
The yen depreciated to 124.15 against the euro today from 123.31 at the 3 p.m. close of stock trading in Tokyo yesterday, and weakened to 90.75 versus the dollar today from 90.38. A weaker yen boosts the value of overseas income at Japanese companies when converted into their home currency.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Japanese Stocks Rise on Economic View Report; Mitsui Gains
March 11 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks advanced after the Nikkei newspaper reported the government may lift its outlook on the nation’s economy and on speculation iron ore prices will increase as demand grows.
Mitsui & Co., which owns a 15 percent stake in Vale SA’s major shareholder, climbed 3 percent after the Nikkei said Brazil-based Vale is seeking to raise iron-ore prices. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Japan’s largest operator of iron-ore ships, rose 2.3 percent. Sony Corp., which gets 71 percent of its sales outside Japan, advanced 2.7 percent as the yen fell against the dollar. Shinsei Bank Ltd. slid 1.9 percent after the Financial Times said it decided not to merge with Aozora Bank Ltd.
“The economy is undoubtedly in the midst of mild recovery,” said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees the equivalent of $450 million at Tokyo-based Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “Manufacturers’ earnings are improving thanks to the resilience of emerging economies.”
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 0.9 percent to 10,653.53 as of 10:13 a.m. in Tokyo. The broader Topix index rose 0.9 percent to 930.75 with almost six times as many shares gaining as falling.
The Topix has increased 2.2 percent for the past four days, set for a third-straight weekly gain, as a lower-than-estimated U.S. unemployment rate boosted investor confidence in a U.S. economic recovery. The average daily value of stocks traded in Tokyo dropped 16 percent this week from the 12-month mean as investors awaited the settlement of Nikkei 225 futures and options due tomorrow.
Sony, Nintendo
The Japanese government will probably upgrade its overall assessment on the nation’s economy for the first time since July, the Nikkei said today, without identifying its source of information. The report is expected to say the economy is making a “steady recovery” as rising exports to China drove growth in production, the newspaper said.
Sony, the maker of the PlayStation 3 game machine, jumped 2.7 percent to 3,465 yen. Nintendo Co., the world’s biggest maker of handheld game players climbed 1.4 percent to 27,890 yen.
The yen weakened to as low as 90.82 against the dollar from 90.10 at the 3 p.m. close of Tokyo stock trading yesterday, while depreciating to 124.00 per euro from 122.53. A weaker yen boosts the value of overseas sales at Japanese companies when converted into their home currency.
Mitsui O.S.K., Japan’s No. 2 shipping line, advanced 2.3 percent to 623 yen. Smaller rival Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. rose 1.4 percent to 352 yen after the Nikkei said its container- ship business may have a narrower loss in the year to March 2011. Shipping companies collectively posted the steepest climb among the Topix’s 33 industry groups.
Trading Houses
The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping costs for commodities, rose 0.6 percent in London yesterday.
Mitsui, Japan’s No. 2 trading house by market value, gained 3 percent to 1,549 yen. Itochu Corp., which holds interest in a Brazilian iron-ore producer, climbed 2.4 percent to 781 yen.
Vale, controlled by Valepar SA, is seeking to raise contract iron-ore prices by more than 90 percent in negotiations with Japanese steelmakers, the Nikkei reported today. Vale, the world’s biggest producer of the raw material used to make steel, has proposed increasing the price for the April-June period, Nikkei said.
JFE Holdings Inc., Japan’s second-biggest steelmaker, fell 1.1 percent to 3,460 yen and was the heaviest drag on the Topix. Smaller rival Kobe Steel Ltd. dropped 0.6 percent to 180 yen.
Shinsei slumped 1.9 percent to 102 yen. The bank concluded a planned merger with smaller rival Aozora Bank is no longer necessary and is planning to raise about $830 million, the Financial Times reported. Aozora rose 0.8 percent to 121 yen.
At 11 a.m. Tokyo time, China’s government is scheduled to release its reports on the nation’s consumer-price index, retail sales and industrial production.
Mitsui & Co., which owns a 15 percent stake in Vale SA’s major shareholder, climbed 3 percent after the Nikkei said Brazil-based Vale is seeking to raise iron-ore prices. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd., Japan’s largest operator of iron-ore ships, rose 2.3 percent. Sony Corp., which gets 71 percent of its sales outside Japan, advanced 2.7 percent as the yen fell against the dollar. Shinsei Bank Ltd. slid 1.9 percent after the Financial Times said it decided not to merge with Aozora Bank Ltd.
“The economy is undoubtedly in the midst of mild recovery,” said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees the equivalent of $450 million at Tokyo-based Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “Manufacturers’ earnings are improving thanks to the resilience of emerging economies.”
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 0.9 percent to 10,653.53 as of 10:13 a.m. in Tokyo. The broader Topix index rose 0.9 percent to 930.75 with almost six times as many shares gaining as falling.
The Topix has increased 2.2 percent for the past four days, set for a third-straight weekly gain, as a lower-than-estimated U.S. unemployment rate boosted investor confidence in a U.S. economic recovery. The average daily value of stocks traded in Tokyo dropped 16 percent this week from the 12-month mean as investors awaited the settlement of Nikkei 225 futures and options due tomorrow.
Sony, Nintendo
The Japanese government will probably upgrade its overall assessment on the nation’s economy for the first time since July, the Nikkei said today, without identifying its source of information. The report is expected to say the economy is making a “steady recovery” as rising exports to China drove growth in production, the newspaper said.
Sony, the maker of the PlayStation 3 game machine, jumped 2.7 percent to 3,465 yen. Nintendo Co., the world’s biggest maker of handheld game players climbed 1.4 percent to 27,890 yen.
The yen weakened to as low as 90.82 against the dollar from 90.10 at the 3 p.m. close of Tokyo stock trading yesterday, while depreciating to 124.00 per euro from 122.53. A weaker yen boosts the value of overseas sales at Japanese companies when converted into their home currency.
Mitsui O.S.K., Japan’s No. 2 shipping line, advanced 2.3 percent to 623 yen. Smaller rival Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. rose 1.4 percent to 352 yen after the Nikkei said its container- ship business may have a narrower loss in the year to March 2011. Shipping companies collectively posted the steepest climb among the Topix’s 33 industry groups.
Trading Houses
The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping costs for commodities, rose 0.6 percent in London yesterday.
Mitsui, Japan’s No. 2 trading house by market value, gained 3 percent to 1,549 yen. Itochu Corp., which holds interest in a Brazilian iron-ore producer, climbed 2.4 percent to 781 yen.
Vale, controlled by Valepar SA, is seeking to raise contract iron-ore prices by more than 90 percent in negotiations with Japanese steelmakers, the Nikkei reported today. Vale, the world’s biggest producer of the raw material used to make steel, has proposed increasing the price for the April-June period, Nikkei said.
JFE Holdings Inc., Japan’s second-biggest steelmaker, fell 1.1 percent to 3,460 yen and was the heaviest drag on the Topix. Smaller rival Kobe Steel Ltd. dropped 0.6 percent to 180 yen.
Shinsei slumped 1.9 percent to 102 yen. The bank concluded a planned merger with smaller rival Aozora Bank is no longer necessary and is planning to raise about $830 million, the Financial Times reported. Aozora rose 0.8 percent to 121 yen.
At 11 a.m. Tokyo time, China’s government is scheduled to release its reports on the nation’s consumer-price index, retail sales and industrial production.
Japan’s Economy Grows 3.8%, Less Than First Estimated
March 11 (Bloomberg) -- Japan’s economy expanded less than initially estimated in the fourth quarter as companies pared spending and stockpiles as deflation deepened.
Gross domestic product rose at an annual 3.8 percent pace, slower than the 4.6 percent reported in preliminary figures last month, the Cabinet Office said today in Tokyo. The GDP deflator, a gauge of price trends, fell a record 2.8 percent.
The report suggests business spending remains the weak link of an economic recovery that has begun to spread from exporters to households. Renewed demand in Asia is helping Japanese companies such as Canon Inc. and Honda Motor Co., which may minimize an economic slowdown in the coming months as government stimulus measures fade.
“A rebound in capital investment is key for Japan’s economy to regain momentum,” said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Nikko Cordial Securities Inc. in Tokyo. “While declines in investment are coming to a halt, it’s hard to tell when companies will start to beef up spending again.”
The yen traded at 90.46 per dollar at 9:47 a.m. in Tokyo from 90.40 before the report. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.7 percent.
The median estimate of 29 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for 4 percent growth on an annualized basis. The economy grew 0.9 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous three months, slower than the 1.1 percent first reported.
‘Receded Slightly’
“Concerns about a double-dip recession have receded slightly,” Keisuke Tsumura, a parliamentary secretary at the Cabinet Office, told reporters in Tokyo. “There are budding signs for self-sustained recovery.”
Private inventory shaved 0.1 percentage point from growth, after the initial report showed it added to GDP, the main reason for today’s revision. Automakers may have responded to higher demand by paring stockpiles, Tsumura said. Capital spending rose 0.9 percent in the three months through December from the previous quarter, compared with a 1 percent increase estimated last month.
About a third of factory capacity is sitting idle and falling prices are squeezing profit margins, prompting companies such as Sony Corp. to cut costs to protect their earnings. Sony last month narrowed its forecast for a net loss, saying it is approaching its target of trimming 330 billion yen ($3.7 billion) in costs by eliminating jobs and shutting factories.
Providing Incentives
The government has been providing incentives to buy energy- efficient cars and home appliances. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama unveiled a 7.2 trillion yen stimulus package in December. Consumer spending, which makes up about 60 percent of the economy, climbed 0.7 percent, unchanged from the initial report, the government said today.
An increase in household outlays may not last as government stimulus measures fade and a shortfall in demand keeps suppressing prices, said Hiroshi Watanabe, a senior economist at Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo. “The stimulus program gives a one-shot boost to the economy, but it won’t substantially increase consumer spending,” he said.
Finance Minister Naoto Kan last week renewed calls for the Bank of Japan to help arrest deflation, saying he hopes prices will rise this year. Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Hirohide Yamaguchi said last month that prices may not be improving as quickly as he had expected.
The drop in the GDP deflator, the broadest measure of prices in the economy, was the largest since comparable data were made available in 1955. The government initially reported a 3 percent decline in the gauge.
‘Worst-Case Scenario’
“The deflator number really is terrible at the moment,” said Richard Jerram, chief economist at Macquarie Securities Ltd. in Tokyo. “The worst-case scenario is that if you never get out of deflation, you’re running an economy with interest rates that are persistently too high, which damages growth and also makes it impossible to stabilize public finances.”
The government’s options to combat falling prices have been limited by its swelling debt burden, the largest in the industrialized world. Kan said yesterday maintaining fiscal discipline is a significant challenge for policy makers. The central bank has kept the benchmark interest rate at 0.1 percent since December 2008.
Still, some companies are benefiting from rebounding demand in Asia, particularly China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy and Japan’s biggest overseas market. Canon, the world’s biggest camera maker, forecasts sales volume will rise 10 percent in China this year, Masaya Maeda, director of the company, said this week. Honda Motor’s sales in China rose 40 percent in February from a year earlier.
Exports increased 5 percent from the previous quarter, unchanged from the preliminary figures. Net exports, or shipments minus imports, added 0.5 percentage point to growth, the same as last month’s reading.
Some reports for January indicate the export revival is filtering to workers. The unemployment rate dropped to a 10- month low of 4.9 percent and wages climbed for the first time in 20 months.
Gross domestic product rose at an annual 3.8 percent pace, slower than the 4.6 percent reported in preliminary figures last month, the Cabinet Office said today in Tokyo. The GDP deflator, a gauge of price trends, fell a record 2.8 percent.
The report suggests business spending remains the weak link of an economic recovery that has begun to spread from exporters to households. Renewed demand in Asia is helping Japanese companies such as Canon Inc. and Honda Motor Co., which may minimize an economic slowdown in the coming months as government stimulus measures fade.
“A rebound in capital investment is key for Japan’s economy to regain momentum,” said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Nikko Cordial Securities Inc. in Tokyo. “While declines in investment are coming to a halt, it’s hard to tell when companies will start to beef up spending again.”
The yen traded at 90.46 per dollar at 9:47 a.m. in Tokyo from 90.40 before the report. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.7 percent.
The median estimate of 29 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for 4 percent growth on an annualized basis. The economy grew 0.9 percent in the fourth quarter from the previous three months, slower than the 1.1 percent first reported.
‘Receded Slightly’
“Concerns about a double-dip recession have receded slightly,” Keisuke Tsumura, a parliamentary secretary at the Cabinet Office, told reporters in Tokyo. “There are budding signs for self-sustained recovery.”
Private inventory shaved 0.1 percentage point from growth, after the initial report showed it added to GDP, the main reason for today’s revision. Automakers may have responded to higher demand by paring stockpiles, Tsumura said. Capital spending rose 0.9 percent in the three months through December from the previous quarter, compared with a 1 percent increase estimated last month.
About a third of factory capacity is sitting idle and falling prices are squeezing profit margins, prompting companies such as Sony Corp. to cut costs to protect their earnings. Sony last month narrowed its forecast for a net loss, saying it is approaching its target of trimming 330 billion yen ($3.7 billion) in costs by eliminating jobs and shutting factories.
Providing Incentives
The government has been providing incentives to buy energy- efficient cars and home appliances. Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama unveiled a 7.2 trillion yen stimulus package in December. Consumer spending, which makes up about 60 percent of the economy, climbed 0.7 percent, unchanged from the initial report, the government said today.
An increase in household outlays may not last as government stimulus measures fade and a shortfall in demand keeps suppressing prices, said Hiroshi Watanabe, a senior economist at Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo. “The stimulus program gives a one-shot boost to the economy, but it won’t substantially increase consumer spending,” he said.
Finance Minister Naoto Kan last week renewed calls for the Bank of Japan to help arrest deflation, saying he hopes prices will rise this year. Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Hirohide Yamaguchi said last month that prices may not be improving as quickly as he had expected.
The drop in the GDP deflator, the broadest measure of prices in the economy, was the largest since comparable data were made available in 1955. The government initially reported a 3 percent decline in the gauge.
‘Worst-Case Scenario’
“The deflator number really is terrible at the moment,” said Richard Jerram, chief economist at Macquarie Securities Ltd. in Tokyo. “The worst-case scenario is that if you never get out of deflation, you’re running an economy with interest rates that are persistently too high, which damages growth and also makes it impossible to stabilize public finances.”
The government’s options to combat falling prices have been limited by its swelling debt burden, the largest in the industrialized world. Kan said yesterday maintaining fiscal discipline is a significant challenge for policy makers. The central bank has kept the benchmark interest rate at 0.1 percent since December 2008.
Still, some companies are benefiting from rebounding demand in Asia, particularly China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy and Japan’s biggest overseas market. Canon, the world’s biggest camera maker, forecasts sales volume will rise 10 percent in China this year, Masaya Maeda, director of the company, said this week. Honda Motor’s sales in China rose 40 percent in February from a year earlier.
Exports increased 5 percent from the previous quarter, unchanged from the preliminary figures. Net exports, or shipments minus imports, added 0.5 percentage point to growth, the same as last month’s reading.
Some reports for January indicate the export revival is filtering to workers. The unemployment rate dropped to a 10- month low of 4.9 percent and wages climbed for the first time in 20 months.
Indian Stocks are Better Long-Term Bet, Franklin Says
March 10 (Bloomberg) -- India offers better long-term returns on stocks than China given the outlook for economic growth and corporate earnings, according to Franklin Templeton Investments.
India’s economy may sustain faster expansion from a smaller base as “favorable” demographics boost consumption, said Stephen Dover, who oversees $25 billion as managing director and international chief investment officer for Franklin Templeton Investments’ Local Asset Management groups. Price clearing and the exchange rate are “freer” in India, he said.
“If we were to make one long-term bet, we would make it on India rather than China,” he told reporters in Singapore. “India is, in my opinion, still quite underinvested. Looking at India, India has the opportunity for some of that growth that China has had and the difference is that investors can participate in that growth.”
The Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensitive Index has lost 2.2 percent this year, after rallying 81 percent in 2009, as the economy dodged the worst of the global recession. The gauge narrowly beat the 80 percent increase in China’s Shanghai Composite Index to rank among the 10 best performers globally.
Dover said 90 percent of discussion at conferences is focused on China. “For investors really looking for opportunities, the footnote is on India,” he said.
Earnings Growth
Earnings in India may grow 20 percent over the next three years, according to estimates by Sukumar Rajah, chief investment officer at Franklin Templeton Asset Management India Pvt. The company counts Infosys Technologies Ltd., Nestle India Ltd. and Bharti Airtel Ltd. among its holdings in the country.
San Mateo, California-based Franklin Templeton oversaw $189.5 billion in non-U.S. stocks, $66.3 billion in domestic equities and $187.6 billion in fixed-income funds as of Dec. 31. These include emerging-market funds managed by Mark Mobius, who correctly predicted on March 23 the start of a “bull-market” rally. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose a record 75 percent in 2009.
India stocks may “outpace” other emerging markets as the country’s economy strengthens, Mobius, Singapore-based chairman of Templeton Asset Management Ltd., said in a question and answer interview posted on the company’s Web site on March 1.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in his Feb. 26 budget speech that India had weathered the worst global economic crisis since the 1930s and that the South Asian nation’s growth may reach 10 percent in the “not-too-distant future.”
China, Brazil
Still, Franklin Templeton continues to find investment “opportunities” in China, particularly as consumer spending increases. The investment firm holds shares of China Yurun Food Group Ltd., Parkson Retail Group Ltd. and Ctrip.com International Ltd., Rajah said.
Among other emerging markets, Franklin Templeton is also optimistic on the outlook for Brazilian equities, according to Frederico Sampaio, portfolio manager at Franklin Templeton Investimentos Brasil. The benchmark Bovespa index rallied 83 percent last year and has gained 1.4 percent so far in 2010.
Commodity stocks may lead gains in Brazil this year with an expected pickup in the U.S. economy, Sampaio said in an interview before the briefing today. Vale SA, the world’s biggest iron-ore producer and his top holding, may benefit as prices for the commodity will probably rise after negotiations currently taking place with buyers, he said.
Shares that benefit from the domestic outlook for Brazil’s economy may be a better bet over the long term, Sampaio said.
India’s economy may sustain faster expansion from a smaller base as “favorable” demographics boost consumption, said Stephen Dover, who oversees $25 billion as managing director and international chief investment officer for Franklin Templeton Investments’ Local Asset Management groups. Price clearing and the exchange rate are “freer” in India, he said.
“If we were to make one long-term bet, we would make it on India rather than China,” he told reporters in Singapore. “India is, in my opinion, still quite underinvested. Looking at India, India has the opportunity for some of that growth that China has had and the difference is that investors can participate in that growth.”
The Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensitive Index has lost 2.2 percent this year, after rallying 81 percent in 2009, as the economy dodged the worst of the global recession. The gauge narrowly beat the 80 percent increase in China’s Shanghai Composite Index to rank among the 10 best performers globally.
Dover said 90 percent of discussion at conferences is focused on China. “For investors really looking for opportunities, the footnote is on India,” he said.
Earnings Growth
Earnings in India may grow 20 percent over the next three years, according to estimates by Sukumar Rajah, chief investment officer at Franklin Templeton Asset Management India Pvt. The company counts Infosys Technologies Ltd., Nestle India Ltd. and Bharti Airtel Ltd. among its holdings in the country.
San Mateo, California-based Franklin Templeton oversaw $189.5 billion in non-U.S. stocks, $66.3 billion in domestic equities and $187.6 billion in fixed-income funds as of Dec. 31. These include emerging-market funds managed by Mark Mobius, who correctly predicted on March 23 the start of a “bull-market” rally. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose a record 75 percent in 2009.
India stocks may “outpace” other emerging markets as the country’s economy strengthens, Mobius, Singapore-based chairman of Templeton Asset Management Ltd., said in a question and answer interview posted on the company’s Web site on March 1.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in his Feb. 26 budget speech that India had weathered the worst global economic crisis since the 1930s and that the South Asian nation’s growth may reach 10 percent in the “not-too-distant future.”
China, Brazil
Still, Franklin Templeton continues to find investment “opportunities” in China, particularly as consumer spending increases. The investment firm holds shares of China Yurun Food Group Ltd., Parkson Retail Group Ltd. and Ctrip.com International Ltd., Rajah said.
Among other emerging markets, Franklin Templeton is also optimistic on the outlook for Brazilian equities, according to Frederico Sampaio, portfolio manager at Franklin Templeton Investimentos Brasil. The benchmark Bovespa index rallied 83 percent last year and has gained 1.4 percent so far in 2010.
Commodity stocks may lead gains in Brazil this year with an expected pickup in the U.S. economy, Sampaio said in an interview before the briefing today. Vale SA, the world’s biggest iron-ore producer and his top holding, may benefit as prices for the commodity will probably rise after negotiations currently taking place with buyers, he said.
Shares that benefit from the domestic outlook for Brazil’s economy may be a better bet over the long term, Sampaio said.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Bank of China, Fuyao, Gemdale, SAIC Motor: China Equity Preview
March 10 (Bloomberg) -- The following companies may have unusual price changes in China trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and share prices are as of the last close.
The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks the bigger of China’s stock exchanges, gained 15.91, or 0.5 percent, to 3,069.14. The CSI 300 Index rose 0.6 percent to 3,305.86.
The customs office is due to release February trade data today. Exports probably rose 38.3 percent from a year earlier, the third monthly increase and the biggest gain in three years, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Imports may have climbed 38 percent, leaving a trade surplus of $7.15 billion.
Automakers: China’s passenger-car sales gained 55 percent to 942,900 units in February from a year earlier, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Total vehicle sales, which include buses and trucks, rose 46 percent, it said.
SAIC Motor Corp. (600104 CH), China’s largest carmaker, fell 0.2 percent to 21.95 yuan. FAW Car Co. (000800 CH), which makes passenger cars in China with Volkswagen AG, added 0.1 percent to 24.03 yuan.
Bank of China Ltd. (601988 CH): The nation’s third-largest bank has no further fundraising plans in mainland China after its previously announced plans to sell bonds, Chairman Xiao Gang said yesterday in Beijing. The bank’s new loans will grow at a pace exceeding 15 percent this year, Xiao said. The stock gained 0.5 percent to 4.17 yuan.
China Citic Bank Corp. (601998 CH): The banking unit of the nation’s largest investment company plans to sell subordinate bonds to boost capital, Chairman Kong Dan said yesterday in Beijing. The shares gained 3.3 percent to 7.13 yuan.
China State Construction Engineering Corp. (601668 CH): The nation’s largest housing contractor said property sales rose 72 percent to 6.5 billion yuan ($952.2 million) in the first two months of this year from a year earlier. The shares rose 1.2 percent to 4.33 yuan.
COFCO Property (Group) Co. (000031 CH): The developer said 2009 net income jumped 163 percent to 373.5 million yuan on sales that increased 85 percent. The stock gained 3.7 percent to 9.80 yuan.
Fuyao Group Glass Industries Co. (600660 CH): China’s biggest auto-glass maker said 2009 net income surged 354 percent to 1.1 billion yuan as the company cut costs. The stock lost 0.4 percent to 12.43 yuan.
Gemdale Corp. (600383 CH): The country’s fourth-largest developer by market value said its 2009 net income rose 111 percent to 1.78 billion yuan on sales that increased 24 percent. The stock jumped 6.9 percent to 13.77 yuan.
The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks the bigger of China’s stock exchanges, gained 15.91, or 0.5 percent, to 3,069.14. The CSI 300 Index rose 0.6 percent to 3,305.86.
The customs office is due to release February trade data today. Exports probably rose 38.3 percent from a year earlier, the third monthly increase and the biggest gain in three years, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Imports may have climbed 38 percent, leaving a trade surplus of $7.15 billion.
Automakers: China’s passenger-car sales gained 55 percent to 942,900 units in February from a year earlier, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. Total vehicle sales, which include buses and trucks, rose 46 percent, it said.
SAIC Motor Corp. (600104 CH), China’s largest carmaker, fell 0.2 percent to 21.95 yuan. FAW Car Co. (000800 CH), which makes passenger cars in China with Volkswagen AG, added 0.1 percent to 24.03 yuan.
Bank of China Ltd. (601988 CH): The nation’s third-largest bank has no further fundraising plans in mainland China after its previously announced plans to sell bonds, Chairman Xiao Gang said yesterday in Beijing. The bank’s new loans will grow at a pace exceeding 15 percent this year, Xiao said. The stock gained 0.5 percent to 4.17 yuan.
China Citic Bank Corp. (601998 CH): The banking unit of the nation’s largest investment company plans to sell subordinate bonds to boost capital, Chairman Kong Dan said yesterday in Beijing. The shares gained 3.3 percent to 7.13 yuan.
China State Construction Engineering Corp. (601668 CH): The nation’s largest housing contractor said property sales rose 72 percent to 6.5 billion yuan ($952.2 million) in the first two months of this year from a year earlier. The shares rose 1.2 percent to 4.33 yuan.
COFCO Property (Group) Co. (000031 CH): The developer said 2009 net income jumped 163 percent to 373.5 million yuan on sales that increased 85 percent. The stock gained 3.7 percent to 9.80 yuan.
Fuyao Group Glass Industries Co. (600660 CH): China’s biggest auto-glass maker said 2009 net income surged 354 percent to 1.1 billion yuan as the company cut costs. The stock lost 0.4 percent to 12.43 yuan.
Gemdale Corp. (600383 CH): The country’s fourth-largest developer by market value said its 2009 net income rose 111 percent to 1.78 billion yuan on sales that increased 24 percent. The stock jumped 6.9 percent to 13.77 yuan.
Philippine Export Growth Accelerates to 14-Year High
March 10 (Bloomberg) -- Philippine exports rose at the fastest pace in more than 14 years in January as demand for electronics goods gained amid the global economic recovery.
Shipments abroad increased 42.5 percent from a year earlier to $3.58 billion, the National Statistics Office said in Manila today. That compares with the median forecast for a 30.2 percent gain in a Bloomberg News survey of nine economists.
Rising exports, which account for about a third of the Philippines’s $167 billion economy, are helping spur growth after expansion slowed to an 11-year low of 0.9 percent in 2009. The central bank will consider unwinding some of its stimulus measures even as it may keep interest rates unchanged to support the recovery, Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said this week.
“Strong exports should help maintain or create jobs as it trickles into the economy,” Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at Banco de Oro Unibank Inc., said before the report. “It’s a clear sign that there is recovery, supporting the central bank’s decision to start its exit strategy.”
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas earlier this year raised the rediscounting rate, one of the interest rates it charges lenders for borrowing money from the central bank, by half a percentage point to 4 percent. The central bank will probably keep benchmark borrowing costs at a record-low 4 percent for a sixth straight meeting tomorrow, economists forecast.
Record-low interest rates and increased government spending around the world have revived demand for Philippine-made Texas Instruments Inc. semiconductors and The Gap Inc. clothing. Worldwide semiconductor sales rose 47.2 percent in January from a year earlier, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.
Shipments abroad increased 42.5 percent from a year earlier to $3.58 billion, the National Statistics Office said in Manila today. That compares with the median forecast for a 30.2 percent gain in a Bloomberg News survey of nine economists.
Rising exports, which account for about a third of the Philippines’s $167 billion economy, are helping spur growth after expansion slowed to an 11-year low of 0.9 percent in 2009. The central bank will consider unwinding some of its stimulus measures even as it may keep interest rates unchanged to support the recovery, Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo said this week.
“Strong exports should help maintain or create jobs as it trickles into the economy,” Jonathan Ravelas, chief market strategist at Banco de Oro Unibank Inc., said before the report. “It’s a clear sign that there is recovery, supporting the central bank’s decision to start its exit strategy.”
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas earlier this year raised the rediscounting rate, one of the interest rates it charges lenders for borrowing money from the central bank, by half a percentage point to 4 percent. The central bank will probably keep benchmark borrowing costs at a record-low 4 percent for a sixth straight meeting tomorrow, economists forecast.
Record-low interest rates and increased government spending around the world have revived demand for Philippine-made Texas Instruments Inc. semiconductors and The Gap Inc. clothing. Worldwide semiconductor sales rose 47.2 percent in January from a year earlier, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.
Subbarao Says India Deficit Cut Helps Rate Policy
March 9 (Bloomberg) -- Indian central bank Governor Duvvuri Subbarao said the government’s plan to narrow the budget deficit makes it easier to set interest rates in the world’s fastest- growing major economy after China.
“The reduction in fiscal deficit certainly helps in monetary-policy management,” Subbarao told reporters yesterday after a meeting of global central-bank counterparts in Basel, Switzerland. It “certainly helps both in managing inflation as well as providing space for credit demand.”
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Feb. 26 unveiled plans to cut the budget deficit to 5.5 percent of gross domestic product in the year starting April 1 from 6.9 percent the previous year, the sharpest reduction in 19 years. That means Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government will need to borrow less, enabling private credit to grow more strongly.
“We believe that there will be enough liquidity to meet private liquidity demand,” Subbarao said. “There is enough liquidity there and enough supply to meet the government borrowing program.”
Bond Yields Rise
The budget unveiled by Mukherjee estimates the government’s public debt sales to increase by 1.3 percent, less than the 2 percent median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey, to 4.57 trillion rupees in the next fiscal year.
Tax increases and 400 billion rupees ($9 billion) of state asset sales will shrink a debt burden equivalent to about 82 percent of the economy.
Even so, the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond has climbed 14 basis points to 8 percent since the budget plan on inflation concerns.
Subbarao said that while bond yields have risen, they still are “reasonable” and he expects inflation to “moderate in weeks and months ahead.”
India’s inflation rate rose to 8.56 percent in January, the highest in 15 months, from 7.31 percent in December, the commerce ministry said Feb. 15.
“Yields have hardened a little bit,” he said. “We’ll manage the program in such a way that yields are within reasonable limits and interest rates don’t have a negative impact on the competitiveness of the economy.”
Subbarao has kept the central bank’s key reverse repurchase rate at a record low of 3.25 percent since April. In January, he raised the proportion of deposits lenders need to keep as cash reserves to 5.75 percent from 5 percent.
In India, where policy makers aim to achieve the fastest- growing economy in the world within four years, fiscal stimulus steps saw the deficit climb from 2.7 percent of GDP two years ago. The country’s debt level is almost quadruple China’s, according to International Monetary Fund figures.
Moody’s Investors Service ranks India’s rupee-denominated debt at Ba2, two levels below investment grade, while Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s have a BBB- rating, the lowest investment grade.
“The reduction in fiscal deficit certainly helps in monetary-policy management,” Subbarao told reporters yesterday after a meeting of global central-bank counterparts in Basel, Switzerland. It “certainly helps both in managing inflation as well as providing space for credit demand.”
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Feb. 26 unveiled plans to cut the budget deficit to 5.5 percent of gross domestic product in the year starting April 1 from 6.9 percent the previous year, the sharpest reduction in 19 years. That means Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government will need to borrow less, enabling private credit to grow more strongly.
“We believe that there will be enough liquidity to meet private liquidity demand,” Subbarao said. “There is enough liquidity there and enough supply to meet the government borrowing program.”
Bond Yields Rise
The budget unveiled by Mukherjee estimates the government’s public debt sales to increase by 1.3 percent, less than the 2 percent median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey, to 4.57 trillion rupees in the next fiscal year.
Tax increases and 400 billion rupees ($9 billion) of state asset sales will shrink a debt burden equivalent to about 82 percent of the economy.
Even so, the yield on the benchmark 10-year government bond has climbed 14 basis points to 8 percent since the budget plan on inflation concerns.
Subbarao said that while bond yields have risen, they still are “reasonable” and he expects inflation to “moderate in weeks and months ahead.”
India’s inflation rate rose to 8.56 percent in January, the highest in 15 months, from 7.31 percent in December, the commerce ministry said Feb. 15.
“Yields have hardened a little bit,” he said. “We’ll manage the program in such a way that yields are within reasonable limits and interest rates don’t have a negative impact on the competitiveness of the economy.”
Subbarao has kept the central bank’s key reverse repurchase rate at a record low of 3.25 percent since April. In January, he raised the proportion of deposits lenders need to keep as cash reserves to 5.75 percent from 5 percent.
In India, where policy makers aim to achieve the fastest- growing economy in the world within four years, fiscal stimulus steps saw the deficit climb from 2.7 percent of GDP two years ago. The country’s debt level is almost quadruple China’s, according to International Monetary Fund figures.
Moody’s Investors Service ranks India’s rupee-denominated debt at Ba2, two levels below investment grade, while Fitch Ratings and Standard & Poor’s have a BBB- rating, the lowest investment grade.
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