By Patrick Rial and Kotaro Tsunetomi Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks rose a second day as a rise in commodities prices sparked gains by resource companies and amid speculation Barack Obama, just elected the next U.S. president, will take additional steps to spur economic growth. Inpex Holdings Inc. and Japan Petroleum Exploration Co., the nation's biggest oil explorers, jumped more than 12 percent after crude surged the most in six weeks. Honda Motor Co. climbed 9.1 percent on speculation U.S. lawmakers may push for more policies to boost growth. Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Japan's No. 2 listed bank, gained 16 percent as tumbling money market rates indicated credit is easing. Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. soared the most in 22 years after profit exceeded its forecast. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 319.97, or 3.5 percent, to 9,434.57 as of 12:50 p.m. in Tokyo. The gauge has rebounded 32 percent from a 26-year low on Oct. 27. The broader Topix index surged 47.15, or 5.2 percent, to 957.85. ``The hopes are that the incoming president will start formulating some new economic relief measures,'' said Hiroshi Chano, who helps manage $7.3 billion at Yasuda Asset Management Co. in Tokyo. ``This market is oversold, and people are jumping back in as dividends remain high and there are some stocks with solid earnings outlooks. The Nikkei should be heading back to 10,000 soon.'' Democrat Obama defeated Republican John McCain to become the 44th U.S. president. Obama crossed the requisite threshold of 270 electoral votes clinch victory when television networks declared him the winner in the state of California. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index jumped 4.1 percent in New York yesterday, the biggest presidential Election Day rally in 24 years, as oil rose and people briefed on the matter said the government may broaden the focus of its rescue program. Commodity Rally Inpex soared a record 16 percent to 670,000 yen after crude surged and the company won approval to buy a 20 percent stake in a Brazilian oil field. Smaller rival Japan Petroleum rose by its daily limit of 500 yen to 4,450. Mitsui & Co., a trading company that gets more than half its profit from commodities, gained 10 percent to 1,019 yen. Crude oil for December delivery jumped 10 percent to $70.53 a barrel in New York yesterday, the biggest one-day gain since Sept. 22. Copper added 6.4 percent, while nickel surged 8.1 percent as the dollar weakened against global currencies. Honda, which gets half its sales from North America, climbed 10 percent to 2,670 yen. Komatsu Ltd., the world's No. 2 maker of construction machinery, gained 12 percent to 1,284 yen. Nintendo Co., which depends on overseas sales for 80 percent of its revenue, rose 11 percent to 36,200 yen in Osaka trading. Stimulus Plans The Treasury may take stakes in non-bank financial firms amid signs the $163 billion it has given to banks in exchange for equity is restoring investor confidence, people familiar with the matter said. Economists including Harvard University's Martin Feldstein, New York University's Nouriel Roubini and Larry Hatheway of UBS AG are calling for the next U.S. president to enact stimulus packages worth $300 billion or more. Mizuho soared 16 percent to 287,300 yen, bringing its gain over the last four trading sessions to 39 percent. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., the country's biggest lender by value, rose 11 percent to 694 yen. The London interbank offered rate, or Libor, for one-month loans slid 18 basis points yesterday to the lowest level since November 2004, spurred on by central-bank cash injections and interest-rate cuts worldwide. The Tokyo equivalent for yen, or Tibor, fell by almost 10 basis points to 0.79 percent, according to the Japanese Bankers Association. `Normal Levels' ``We're seeing a return to more normal levels as investors who didn't want to sell were forced to anyways because of redemptions,'' said Hiromichi Tsuyukubo, a hedge-fund manager in Tokyo at Myojo Asset Management Japan Co., which oversees about $100 million. ``The massive amount of funds being pumped into the system has caused interbank rates to plummet, which has basically eliminated risks to the financial system.'' Sumitomo Heavy, Japan's largest maker of plastic injection- molding gear, soared 25 percent to 384 yen, the sharpest gain since Nov. 18, 1986. Profit in the six months ended in September was 19.8 billion yen ($199 million), beating its May 13 forecast by 24 percent, according to an earnings statement yesterday. Sanyo Electric Co., the world's largest rechargeable-battery maker, jumped 18 percent to 230 yen, adding to a 35 percent rally yesterday, after a company official with Panasonic Corp. said the electronics maker will seek to buy a controlling stake in Sanyo. Japan Steel Works Ltd. was bid higher by its daily limit of 100 yen to 852. The maker of nuclear reactor parts lifted its full-year profit forecast to 19.5 billion yen from an earlier outlook for 17.7 billion yen. To contact the reporters for this story: Patrick Rial in Tokyo at prial@bloomberg.net; Kotaro Tsunetomi in Tokyo at ktsunetomi@bloomberg.net

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