Tokyo: Asian stocks rose, erasing the benchmark index's loss this year, on speculation new austerity measures in Greece will allay concerns of a default. The pound strengthened for the first time in seven days.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 0.5 per cent to 120.60 at 5pm in Tokyo, bringing its return in 2010 to 0.2 per cent. The Stoxx Europe 600 fell 0.2 per cent. while Standard & Poor's 500 futures were little changed. The pound gained on speculation a slump in Prudential Plc shares will hamper its bid for American International Group Inc.'s Asian unit, easing concern about UK capital outflows.
Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou will today announce as much as 4.8 billion euros (Dh24 billion) in extra deficit cuts, including higher taxes and steeper reductions in public workers' bonuses, said a person familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified because the details aren't yet public.
"Greece has been a source of anxiety," said Hiroshi Morikawa, a strategist in Tokyo at MU Investments Co., which manages $14 billion (Dh51 billion). "If the government measures are not what investors expect, concerns on Greece issues will reignite and shares will plunge."
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index rose 0.7 per cent, leading all Asian benchmarks as the government said the economy expanded at the fastest pace in almost two years in the fourth quarter. National Australia Bank Ltd. climbed 2.3 per cent to A$26.20. Wesfarmers Ltd., Australia's second-biggest retailer, gained 1.5 per cent to A$32.57.
Commodity Suppliers
Shares of raw material suppliers advanced the most of the 10 industry group on the MSCI Asia Pacific index on speculation the global recovery will boost metals demand.
Fortescue Metals Group Ltd., Australia's third-biggest iron-ore producer, jumped 3.2 per cent to A$4.85. Rio Tinto Ltd., the world's third-largest mining company, gained 2.4 per cent to A$73.58. Mitsubishi Corp., a Japanese trading house that gets about 40 per cent of sales from commodities, increased 1.8 per cent to 2,289 yen in Tokyo.
