Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose the most in a week, after Japanese exports climbed more than expected and Singapore Exchange Ltd. agreed to buy Australia's stock market operator. The dollar weakened to a 15-year low against the yen after Group of 20 finance leaders said they will limit currency intervention. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 1.4 percent to 131.65 as of 4 p.m. in Tokyo. The Stoxx Europe 600 increased 0.4 percent to 267.76. Futures for the Standard & Poor's 500 Index advanced 0.8 percent. The Dollar Index fell 0.8 percent. Rice and copper led gains in commodities. Investor confidence climbed as Singapore Exchange offered A$8.4 billion ($8.3 billion) to buy ASX Ltd. and Japan's exports rose 14.4 percent in September from a year earlier even after the yen strengthened 10.9 percent this year. The median estimate of 21 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 9.6 percent gain. G-20 officials vowed to refrain from "competitive devaluation" and to let markets set foreign-exchange values. "Confidence in the global economy is strong, compared with a couple months ago when the market was more concerned about fiscal risks," said Hidehiro Tomioka, who helps manage $1.4 billion in Tokyo at MFC Global Investment Management (Japan) Ltd. "Merger activity is one trend that may continue, supported by good cash flow. If these companies were worried about a double- dip, they would be cautious in expanding their businesses." ASX shares surged 19.4 percent in Sydney, driving the S&P/ASX 200 Index 1.3 percent higher. Singapore Exchange declined 4.6 percent. KDDI Surge KDDI Corp. rose 7.3 percent in Tokyo after Japan's second- largest mobile-phone operator announced a 100 billion yen ($1.2 billion) stock buyback. Futures on the S&P 500 increased following Friday's 0.2 percent increase, a third straight week of gains for the U.S. benchmark. More than 85 percent of S&P 500 companies that have posted third-quarter results since Oct. 7 topped the average analyst profit projection. The dollar declined as much as 0.9 percent to 80.66 yen, the weakest level since April 1995. It fell toward a one-week low against the euro, dropping to $1.4061 per euro, near its weakest since Oct. 15, from $1.3954 on Oct. 22. The euro gained to 1.3608 Swiss francs, the most since Aug. 11, before trading at 1.3658, from 1.3632 on Oct. 22. The Australian dollar increased to within one U.S. cent of parity after a report showed producer prices rose faster than economists estimated, adding to prospects the central bank will raise interest rates next month. The Aussie touched 99.59 U.S. cents in Sydney, from 98.28 cents in New York on Oct. 22. It advanced to 80.41 yen from 79.97 yen. Geithner, China G-20 policy makers called for more sustainable current- account gaps without embracing a U.S. proposal for targets, as they ended talks in South Korea on Oct. 23. The G-20 Seoul Summit will be held on Nov. 11 and 12. U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said he expects China will let the yuan to strengthen as officials there understand it's in the interest both of domestic growth and global economic stability. Yuan forwards recovered from their steepest slide in 22 months. The contracts climbed 0.4 percent to 6.4505 per dollar in Hong Kong, reflecting bets the currency will strengthen 3.2 percent from the spot rate of 6.6567, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Cotton jumped to a record on concern that global demand, especially from China, may exceed supply after a hailstorm last week damaged crops in Texas, the biggest U.S. exporter. Cotton for December delivery rose 4.2 percent to $1.2471 a pound, the highest since the fiber started trading 140 years ago, on ICE Futures U.S. in New York. Rice futures climbed to a nine-month high in Chicago, gained 1.8 percent to $14.780 per 100 pounds.

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