Asia stocks rise, headed for weekly gain

Asia stocks rise, headed for weekly gain

A pedestrian looks at various stock prices outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Friday. (Reuters photo)
A pedestrian looks at various stock prices outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Friday. (Reuters photo)

Asian stocks rose on Friday, with the benchmark measure set for a second weekly gain, as indexes from Japan to Hong Kong and China climbed.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.7% to 120.24 as of 5.04pm in Tokyo (3.04pm Thailand time), headed for a 0.5% increase this week.

The measure has advanced 6.4% from a low on Feb 12, rebounding after a 14% drop earlier in the year, as the focus shifts to a Group of 20 meeting that started Friday in Shanghai amid volatility in markets that’s unsettling investors.

“We may well see a lot of talk and little action,” said Niv Dagan, Melbourne-based executive director at Peak Asset Management LLC.

“What we’d like to see is a coordinated approach from the G-20 to boost spending and produce some sense of certainty for markets. Investors remain cautious. We are not seeing too many companies increasing their profit guidance and investors are happy to sit on their hands,” he said

People’s Bank of China governor Zhou Xiaochuan said he still has monetary policy tools at his disposal and there is no reason for yuan depreciation.

US Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew said earlier this week that an “emergency response” shouldn’t be expected from the group despite market gyrations.

Making his second public appearance in a week following months of silence as officials try to soothe anxiety over China’s currency, Zhou said China’s economy remains strong and its structure and quality is improving. The PBOC separately published a statement defining current policy as "prudent with a slight easing bias."

China gains

The Shanghai Composite Index added 1%, paring this week’s drop to 3.3%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 2.5% and the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland firms listed in the city advanced 2.1%.

New home prices in China rose in more than half the cities the government monitors amid moves by authorities to loosen property curbs in regions. Japan’s core inflation was zero in January as low energy prices disrupt efforts to spur gains.

Japan’s Topix index rose 0.3% to cap its first back-to-back weekly gain since November.

Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 1.8% and South Korea’s Kospi index gained 0.1%. Taiwan’s Taiex Index advanced 0.5% and the Jakarta Composite Index climbed 1.6%.

New Zealand’s S&P/NZX 50 Index and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index closed little changed.

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