Stocks Advance in Europe and Asia; U.S. Index Futures Increase

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Stocks Advance in Europe and Asia; U.S. Index Futures Increase

By Adria Cimino

April 25 (Bloomberg) -- Stocks rose in Europe and Asia after earnings from Ericsson AB, Samsung Electronics Co. and Volvo AB exceeded analysts' estimates and banks rallied on speculation the worst of the credit crisis is over. U.S. index futures advanced.

Ericsson, the world's largest maker of wireless networks, soared 25 percent in Stockholm, while Samsung, Asia's biggest electronics maker, reached a two-year high in Seoul. Truckmaker Volvo rebounded from a one-month low as sales in eastern Europe helped it overcome a slump in the U.S. HBOS Plc and Barclays Plc gained after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said the banks won't have to sell shares to replenish capital.

The MSCI World Index added 0.5 percent to 1,507.57 at 10:51 a.m. in London. The index, which is little changed this week, has lost 5.1 percent so far in 2008 on concern earnings will slow as writedowns by financial firms reach $290 billion and the U.S. economy edges toward a recession. Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 0.5 percent.

``There is a lot of cash around, ready to enter the market as soon as the risk aversion goes away,'' said Marino Valensis, who oversees $50.7 billion as chief investment officer at Baring Asset Management Ltd. in London.

Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index added 1.4 percent, leaving it with a 0.4 percent gain for the week.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.8 percent. Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average had its sixth straight weekly gain as the weaker yen boosted the profit outlook for companies that rely on the U.S. for sales. Five-year government bonds fell, sending yields to the biggest jump in nine years, after inflation accelerated and investors bought equities.

U.S. Stocks

U.S. stocks rose yesterday as investors speculated the worst is over for financial firms and consumer companies after Merrill Lynch & Co. eased concern about its finances, the dollar rallied and oil prices fell. American Express Co., the biggest U.S. credit-card lender, late yesterday reported first-quarter profit that beat analysts' estimates.

The dollar headed for its biggest weekly gain in a month against the euro and a second weekly advance against the yen on increasing speculation the Federal Reserve will stop cutting interest rates. U.S. two-year notes are set to post their biggest two-week decline since at least 1982, and European bonds fell today.

Ericsson gained 3.16 kronor to 15.6. First-quarter profit fell 55 percent to 2.65 billion kronor ($445 million) as operators in Europe held back on investments. That topped the analyst estimate of 2.38 billion kronor in a Bloomberg survey.

``I suspect that it is'' the time to buy Ericsson, Roger Nightingale, global strategist at Pointon York Ltd. in London, which manages $1.5 billion, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. ``We are going to see some very strong improvement between the first and second quarter.''

Banks

HBOS, Britain's largest mortgage lender, rose 2.3 percent to 500 pence. Barclays, the U.K.'s third-biggest bank, added 2.2 percent to 465.25 pence.

The banks have ``sufficient'' prospects for ``organic'' capital generation and won't need to raise money in a rights issue, Goldman Sachs analyst James Chappell wrote in a note.

Merrill, the largest U.S. brokerage, climbed the most in three weeks yesterday after saying it has enough capital to maintain its dividend.

Volvo climbed 5.7 percent to 92.5 kronor. The world's second-largest truckmaker said first-quarter profit rose 12 percent to 4.2 billion kronor. Seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News had predicted profit of 3.88 billion kronor.

Earnings

Earnings in Europe will probably shrink in 2008 for the first time in six years. Profit for companies in the Stoxx 600 may drop 0.5 percent this year, according to the average analyst estimate compiled by Bloomberg. That's down from 11 percent growth forecast at the end of last year.

``We've had a lot of earnings today, ones that were at risk, and they've all been positive,'' said Alexandre Iatrides, a fund manager at Richelieu Finance in Paris, which oversees $6.3 billion. ``We're not seeing a strong impact from the economic slowdown.''

Samsung gained 4.4 percent to 690,000 won, the highest since April 2006, after increased sales of liquid-crystal displays and mobile-phone handsets helped lift first-quarter net income by 37 percent, beating estimates.

Baidu.com Inc. added $8.76 to $350.76 in Germany. The owner of China's most popular Internet search site forecast second- quarter revenue as high as 800 million yuan ($114 million) after surging Internet use in the nation spurred companies to buy more online advertising. The forecast was greater than the average analyst estimate for revenue of 675 yuan, according to Bloomberg data.

UniCredit

UniCredit SpA, Italy's biggest bank, gained 3 percent to 4.93 euros after Merrill added the stock to its ``most preferred'' list, saying the first quarter pre-announcement ``gets the bad news out of the way.''

ProSiebenSat.1 Media AG plunged 26 percent to 9.99 euros. The German broadcaster that bought SBS Broadcasting last year said first-quarter earnings dropped 25 percent and that its head of sales will leave.

happylux

DJIA INDEX	12,894.00	63.00	12,834.00	12,904.00	12,778.00	06:18
S&P 500	1,393.50	7.50	1,386.30	1,394.00	1,383.30	06:18
NASDAQ 100	1,928.50	7.75	1,918.75	1,929.50	1,913.50	06:16

[ 本帖最后由 happylux 于 2008-4-25 05:42 编辑 ]