SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asian stocks rose on Friday as stronger-than expected economic indicators from China and the United States boosted confidence in the global economic recovery.

European shares also rose, after slipping in the previous four sessions amid debt concerns in the euro zone. The FTSEurofirst 300 (.FTEU3) rose 0.2 percent, Britain’s FTSE 100 (.FTSE) gained 0.6 percent, Germany’s DAX rose 0.4 percent and France’s CAC 40 (.FCHI) was up 0.3 percent. (.L) (.EU)

Chinese manufacturing gathered momentum last month, handily beating market forecasts and providing further evidence that the economy is pulling smoothly out of a second-quarter slowdown.

The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was up 0.34 percent compared with a rise of 0.24 before the release of China’s Purchasing Managers Index. The index gained more than 17 percent in the last quarter.

“This looks like the real deal. It’s not just inventory correction. We think that end demand is picking up in China and the economy has stabilized after the summer lull,” said Frederick Neuman, co-head Asian economics, HSBC in Hong Kong.

Japan’s Nikkei (.N225) average closed up 0.37 percent on Friday, helped by short-covering after sharp falls the previous day and after U.S. economic data provided a degree of optimism.

The index gained 6.2 percent in September, it is more than 2 percent off the peak hit after Japanese authorities conducted currency market intervention on September 15 to weaken the yen. (.T)

“Japanese stocks are recouping some ground as investors appear to be correcting extreme pessimism triggered yesterday by the yen’s advance and worries about European finance problems,” said Koichi Nosaka, a market analyst at Securities Japan Inc.

DATA WATCH

U.S. data on Thursday showed new jobless benefits fell last week and regional manufacturing grew faster than expected.

Later on Friday, the Institute for Supply Management is scheduled to release U.S. manufacturing data.

U.S. Treasury prices slipped as investors turned to stocks and the dollar held steady after dropping to an eight-month low against a basket of currencies the previous day.

The euro paused below a five-month high on the dollar hit the previous day, helped by data showing euro zone banks are relying less on funds from the European Central bank.

The dollar dipped 0.1 percent to 83.47 yen, but stayed above the previous day’s low at 83.16 yen and last month’s 15-year trough below 83.00 that had prompted Japanese authorities to intervene for the first time in six years.

The Australian dollar jumped on optimism that the strong data from China augured well for the country’s resource exports.

Oil rose above $80 on Friday, staying at a seven-week high, as the renewed momentum in China’s manufacturing sector pointed to stronger demand. Copper also advanced on hopes of greater Chinese demand.

But gold, widely seen as a safe haven, also ticked up, hovering within sight of a lifetime high, although traders said the improving data from China and the U.S. could curb gains.

Traders said spot gold, which stood at $1,310.40 an ounce after hitting a record around $1,315 the previous day, remained volatile as investors watched for signs of a firmer U.S. recovery.

“I guess speculation will still be rife as to the state of the U.S. economy. The need or not for a QE2 (second round of quantitative easing) from the Fed,” said Darren Heathcote, head of trading at Investec Australia in Sydney.

(Additional reporting by Charlotte Cooper and Aiko Hayashi in TOKYO; Editing by Alex Richardson)

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Asian stocks rose on Friday as stronger-than expected economic data from China and the United States boosted confidence in the global economic recovery.

U.S. Treasury prices slipped as investors turned to stocks and the dollar held steady after dropping to an eight-month low against a basket of currencies the previous day.

Chinese manufacturing gathered momentum last month, handily beating market forecasts and providing further evidence that the economy is pulling smoothly out of a second-quarter slowdown.

The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was up 0.36 percent compared with a rise of 0.24 before the release of China’s Purchasing Managers Index. The index gained more than 17 percent in the last quarter.

“This looks like the real deal. It’s not just inventory correction. We think that end demand is picking up in China and the economy has stabilized after the summer lull,” said Frederick Neuman, co-head Asian economics, HSBC in Hong Kong.

Japan’s Nikkei average rose 0.5 percent on Friday, helped by short-covering after sharp falls the previous day and after U.S. economic data provided a degree of optimism.

New U.S. claims for jobless benefits fell last week, a sign of an improving labor market, while Midwest business activity grew more than expected in September. Also, U.S. second-quarter growth was revised a touch higher on firmer consumer spending.

“Japanese stocks are recouping some ground as investors appear to be correcting extreme pessimism triggered yesterday by the yen’s advance and worries about European finance problems,” said Koichi Nosaka, a market analyst at Securities Japan, Inc.

India is scheduled to release its manufacturing survey data later on Friday.

The dollar held steady at 83.55 yen, backing away from the previous day’s low at 83.16 yen and moving further off last month’s 15-year low below 83 which had prompted Japanese authorities to intervene for the first time in six years.

The euro paused below a five-month high on the dollar on Friday while the Australian dollar jumped on optimism that the strong data from China augured well for the country’s resource exports.

(Additional reporting by Charlotte Cooper and Aiko Hayashi in Tokyo)

(Editing by Tomasz Janowski)

LONDON (Reuters) – World stocks kicked off September on a stronger note on Wednesday as data showed a manufacturing rebound in China and stronger-than-expected growth in Australia, while the yen held near recent 15-year peaks against the dollar.

China’s manufacturing sector staged a moderate rebound in August after slowing for several months while Australia’s economy grew at the fastest pace in three years last quarter.

The strong readings from Asia helped offset concerns that the U.S. economy is slowing to an extent that would force the Federal Reserve to embark on a policy of unconventional easing.

“After what could be considered a washout August, September is starting with a flourish,” said Ben Potter, research analyst at IG Markets. The MSCI world equity index (.MIWD00000PUS) rose 0.3 percent, moving further away from a seven-week low hit last week. The benchmark index is still down nearly seven percent since January.

The Thomson Reuters global stock index (.TRXFLDGLPU) rose a third of a percent.

In Europe, the FTSEurofirst 300 index (.FTEU3) gained 0.2 percent, led by mining shares such as Anglo American (AAL.L).

Emerging stocks (.MSCIEF) added 0.6 percent while U.S. crude oil rose 0.4 percent to $72.19 a barrel. German government bond futures fell 8 ticks.

DARKENING

The dollar (.DXY), which still tends to suffer when investors buy into more riskier assets and currencies, lost 0.4 percent against a basket of major currencies.

Conversely, bearishness about the U.S. economy itself is also weighing on the dollar, with minutes of the Fed’s Aug 10 meeting showing the central bank would consider additional easing steps if the outlook weakened “appreciably.”

The meeting was held against a darkening backdrop, and the Fed, in a significant policy shift, decided to reinvest maturing mortgage-related securities in government debt so its support for the stumbling recovery did not fade.

“We’ve seen a reprieve for risk from the data overnight but I’m of the opinion you sell rallies in riskier currencies.” said Kenneth Broux, markets strategist at Lloyds Banking Group.

“The market will keep buying safe havens such as the yen and the Swiss franc if U.S. data continues to disappoint.”

The yen rose 0.1 percent to 84.09 per dollar, around half a yen away from last week’s 15-year high of 83.58. The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.2727.

(Additional reporting by Atul Prakash; editing by Patrick Graham)

RATES CLIMB: A slightly higher stock market lessened demand for safe-haven assets, sending Treasury prices lower and interest rates higher.

EARNINGS WATCH: Stocks and rates rose as investors refrained from placing big bets ahead of second-quarter earnings results that begin trickling in this week.

MIXED AUCTIONS: The government auctioned $60 billion in three- and six-month Treasury bills. Demand for the three-month bills was higher than in an auction earlier this month, while demand for six-month notes was slightly less than in the most recent auction.

LONDON – World stock markets rose Friday on hopes that global economic growth will prove resilient, with investors viewing a surprise interest rate hike in South Korea as a sign of confidence in the recovery.

After a fall in U.S. unemployment benefit claims the previous day, the Bank of Korea raised its benchmark interest rate from a record low — following rate hikes by Taiwan, India and Malaysia in the last two weeks — amid prospects for faster economic growth.

Along with some cautiously upbeat comments from the European Central Bank the day before, traders were encouraged by the news and bid up on stocks.

After broad gains across Asia, Germany’s DAX was 0.3 percent higher at 6,054.87 and Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.1 percent at 5,109.06. France‘s CAC-40 was 0.5 percent higher at 3.554.90.

Wall Street, however, was expected to dip after robust gains earlier this week — Dow futures were 0.2 percent lower at 10,075 and Standard & Poor’s 500 futures were down 0.1 percent at 1,065.50.

“The rate hikes are a loud vote of confidence from Asia‘s central banks that growth will continue, despite weakness in Europe,” DBS bank said in a report.

European stocks have also been helped by speculation that the results from stress tests on banks, to be published later this month, will show the financial sector is in better health than some feared.

ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet on Thursday welcomed the tests as a positive measure and dismissed suggestions that the outcome could add to Europe’s ongoing debt crisis by revealing new problems. He also sounded an upbeat note on the 16-nation euro zone’s economy and indicated that interest rates would remain at record lows for the time being.

Meanwhile, the Chinese central bank said monetary and fiscal policy will likewise remain accommodative in the second half of the year, assuaging some investors’ fears that authorities there were ready to tighten controls on the market to cool off the economy.

The cautiously upbeat tones from Asia and Europe were also helped by a U.S. report showing a larger than expected drop in the number of newly laid-off people seeking unemployment benefits.

By the close in Asia, the Shanghai Composite Index jumped 2.3 percent to 2,470.92 and Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average rose 0.5 percent to 9,585.32 with exporters advancing on a weaker yen.

South Korea’s Kospi advanced 1.4 percent to 1,723.01 after the interest rate decision. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 1.6 percent and Australia’s stock benchmark gained 0.9 percent.

Markets in Singapore, Taiwan, India, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia also rose.

In currencies, the dollar rose to 88.46 yen from 88.38 yen in New York late Thursday. The euro dipped to $1.2671 from $1.2697 after trading above $1.27 for the first time in two months.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 22 cents at $75.66 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.37 to settle at $75.44 a barrel on Thursday.

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Associated Press writer Alex Kennedy in Singapore and researcher Bonnie Cao in Beijing contributed to this story.

NEW YORK (Reuters) –
Stocks climbed on Monday as China’s vow to allow a flexible yuan invigorated optimism in the global recovery and raised the outlook for sales in the long term at U.S. multinationals.

Energy and materials shares led the way up as commodities were boosted by the move. Among U.S.-based multinational companies, Caterpillar Inc (CAT.N) gained 3 percent to $67.84, while Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc (FCX.N) jumped 5.2 percent to $69.30.

China’s yuan surged the most since its revaluation in 2005, and global markets gained following the surprise weekend announcement by China’s central bank that it would allow greater flexibility for the currency.

The move is expected to boost purchasing power and demand in China, the world’s third largest economy. A higher yuan would also help temper inflation by pushing down import prices, which could mean Beijing would have less need to tighten monetary policy aggressively.

“It’s a very large positive in the sense that the next decade of global growth is probably going to be shaped by how well the China consumer develops or doesn’t, and obviously this is a step to help that,” said Mike O’Rourke, chief market strategist at BTIG LLC in New York.

The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) gained 137.32 points, or 1.31 percent, to 10,587.96. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index (.SPX) rose 13.23 points, or 1.18 percent, to 1,130.74. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) climbed 28.40 points, or 1.23 percent, to 2,338.20.

The S&P 500 broke through 1,130, the midpoint between its 2010 high- and low-points and a key technical retracement. But the index could face resistance moving much above it.

An internal BP Plc (BP.L)(BP.N) document released by a U.S. lawmaker estimated that a worst-case scenario rate for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill could be about 100,000 barrels per day, far higher than the current U.S. government figure. BP’s U.S.-listed shares slid 3.7 percent to $30.59.

(Editing by Padraic Cassidy)