BLBG:Stocks, Won Climb on Economy, Earnings; S&P 500 Futures Drop
Stocks (MXWD) rose, heading for the biggest five-day advance in seven weeks, and South Korea’s won strengthened after U.S. jobless claims fell to the lowest level in almost four years and companies from American Express Co. to Microsoft Corp. reported higher-than-estimated profit.
The MSCI All-Country World Index (MXWD) increased 0.3 percent as of 8:29 a.m. in London for a weekly rally of 3.1 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.3 percent and Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures slipped 0.2 percent. The won climbed 0.3 percent to 1,134.21 per dollar for a fourth day of gains. Nickel advanced to a four-month high. Rubber rose, heading for a 12 percent surge this week, the biggest advance in three years.
“We’ve had double dip fears that have not materialized and the U.S. is actually chugging along quite well,” Mikio Kumada, a global strategist at LGT Capital Management in Singapore, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “U.S. companies are reasonably profitable given the environment.”
MSCI’s global equity benchmark has risen for the past three weeks, the longest run of gains since October. In U.S. earnings reports after markets closed yesterday, Google Inc. (GOOG) posted lower-than-estimated fourth-quarter revenue and profit, while American Express said card spending reached a record and holiday sales of Xbox machines boosted income at Microsoft.
The dollar has fallen 2.1 percent versus the euro this week, and the yen is down 2.4 percent against the 17-nation currency. Both declines would be the biggest since October. Claims by Americans for jobless benefits dropped by 50,000 to 352,000 in the week ended Jan. 14, the lowest level since April 2008, Labor Department figures showed yesterday.
GE, SunTrust
Schlumberger Ltd., General Electric Co. and SunTrust Banks Inc. are among U.S. companies scheduled to report fourth-quarter results today. Economic reports may show purchases of existing homes in the U.S. climbed 5.2 percent to a 4.65 million annual pace last month, the most since May 2010, according to the median estimate from economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
Google plunged as much as 10 percent in trading after the close of U.S. exchanges. The owner of the world’s most popular Internet search engine said profit before certain costs was $9.50 a share, missing the $10.50 average estimate from analysts.
Asia Stocks (MXWD)
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) advanced 1.1 percent, poised for a fifth weekly advance. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1 percent in the last day of trading before the Lunar New Year holidays. China’s markets will be shut next week, while trading in Hong Kong will be closed from Jan. 23 to Jan. 25.
A Chinese purchasing managers’ index signaled manufacturing may contract for a third month as the slowing economy boosts the case for the government to further loosen credit controls. The preliminary January reading of 48.8 for the gauge, released by HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics today, compares with a final 48.7 number for December. The dividing line between contraction and expansion is 50.
Li Ning Co. (2331) jumped 8.5 percent, the most in seven weeks, in Hong Kong. China’s biggest sportswear retailer sold 750 million yuan ($119 million) of convertible bonds to TPG Capital and Singapore’s sovereign fund. The new capital gives the company funds for store openings and product development as it seeks to reverse declining sales.
Copper for delivery in three months fell 0.2 percent after rising as much as 0.8 percent. The metal has climbed 4.5 percent in the past five days, heading for the first back-to-back weekly advance since October. Nickel added as much as 1 percent to $20,400 per ton, the highest since Sept. 22.
Rubber futures increased as much as 3.5 percent to 315.8 yen a kilogram. Corn gained 0.4 percent to $6.0825 a bushel, extending a 2.1 percent increase yesterday, the biggest gain this month.
To contact the reporter on this story: Lynn Thomasson in Hong Kong at lthomasson@bloomberg.net; Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at jburgos4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shelley Smith at ssmith118@bloomberg.net
