Asian Stocks Rising on Speculators Easing Bets

Asian stocks rose, after the regional gauge posted its biggest weekly advance in 16 weeks, amid optimism central banks will maintain loose monetary policies to boost economic growth.

Brambles Ltd. (BXB), an Australian support services company that gets about half its sales in the U.S., gained 0.6 percent. Hyundai Motor Co. (005380), South Korea’s largest largest carmaker, advanced 2.6 percent after agreeing with a labor union to restart weekend overtime. OCI Co. lost 5.2 percent, heading for its lowest closing level in more than five years, after clients canceled 1.46 trillion won ($1.3 billion) worth of polysilicon orders to the South Korean chemical manufacturer.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index Excluding Japan advanced 0.2 percent to 476.68 as of 10:29 a.m. in Sydney. The measure rose 2 percent last week, the most since Jan. 4. Markets in China and Japan are closed today for a holiday. The U.S. Federal Reserve will start a two-day policy meeting tomorrow after a government report last week showed the world’s largest economy expanded less than economists’ forecast.

Bloomberg

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