March 2 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose, paced by exporters such as Kyocera Corp., after a U.S. manufacturing report showed that growth in the world's largest economy is adding jobs. Samsung Electronics Co. gained after South Korean goods sold overseas had their biggest advance in 15 years. A lack of ``job creation in the U.S. was thought to be the Achilles' heel of U.S. expansion, so an indication of improvement there is positive for stocks'' in Asia, said Jun Terasaka, who helps manage $8.5 billion at Toyota Asset Management Co. in Tokyo. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which tracks more than 800 stocks in the region, added 0.8 percent to 92.83, the highest since December 2000, at 3 p.m. in Tokyo. Its 62 percent gain since a record low in April has slowed this year on concern the U.S. recovery wasn't creating enough jobs to drive demand for Asian products from digital cameras to semiconductors.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 0.8 percent to 11,361.51, its highest since June 2002. The broader Topix index gained 0.8 percent to 1116.75, led by Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. and UFJ Holdings Inc., after Nikko Citigroup Ltd. added the lenders to its model portfolio for the first time since dropping them in October. In South Korea, the Kospi index surged 1.8 percent to 899.21 after the government said yesterday exports rose 46 percent in February from a year ago, exceeding some economists' estimates. Korean markets were closed yesterday for a public holiday. The U.S. Institute for Supply Management's index of employment rose to 56.3 last month, the highest since December 1987, encouraging investors that jobs growth will pick up. The government reports Friday on February employment. All benchmarks in Asia advanced, apart from indexes in Hong Kong, China and the Philippines. Markets in India and Pakistan were closed for holidays.
Kyocera, Samsung
The ISM report's employment index rose to 56.3 this month from 52.9 in January. On Friday, the Labor Department is forecast to say the economy added 130,000 jobs in February, the most since November 2000, based on the media of 59 economist forecasts. Kyocera, the world's largest maker of ceramic packaging used to protect finished microchips, jumped 2.8 percent to 8,390 yen. Honda Motor Co., which gets as much as 90 percent of its operating profit from North America, added 2.3 percent to 4,880. Samsung Electronics, which accounts for more than a 10th of South Korea's exports, rose 1.7 percent to 554,000 won. LG Electronics Inc., which gets 75 percent of sales overseas, advanced 4.1 percent to 68,900 won. Exports-Led Growth South Korean exports increased by the most in 15 years in February, because of accelerating global demand for the nation's semiconductors, cars and cell phones. The gain exceeded the median 36 percent increase in a Bloomberg News survey. Worldwide sales of semiconductors rose 27 percent in January from a year earlier, led by gains in Japan and Asia, the Semiconductor Industry Association said. ``We can probably be more confident about an exports-led economy,'' said Jeon Woo Dong, who manages the equivalent of $426 million at KB Investment Trust Management Co. in Seoul. ``The U.S. report that showed higher employment eases concern about the economic growth.'' BHP Billiton, the world's largest miner, climbed to a record A$12.67 after Merrill Lynch & Co. said the stock will rise to A$13.50 within 12 months and reiterated its ``buy'' rating. BHP yesterday agreed to sell $9 billion of iron ore to China. ``This announcement provides additional certainty regarding sales volumes into the future and underpins BHP Billiton's expansion plans,'' Vicky Binns, head of equities research at Merrill Lynch in Sydney, wrote in a report.
Japanese Banks
Mizuho, Japan's largest lender by assets, added 1.5 percent to 345,000 yen. Sumitomo Mitsui, the country's third-biggest bank by assets, advanced 1.9 percent to 639,000. UFJ, the nation's No. 4 bank, climbed 2.8 percent to 519,000 yen. Nikko Citigroup's chief strategist Alexander Kinmont recommended investors hold 7.5 percent of their portfolios in shares of the three lenders, and that they reduce cash holdings to zero. Investors' appetite for equities is increasing because of growth signs in the domestic economy, he wrote in a note to clients dated today. Investors from outside Japan were net buyers of the country's equities for a ninth week in 10 during the period ended Feb. 20, according to the latest weekly figures from the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
Hong Kong
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index shed 0.3 percent to 13,870.81. HSBC Holdings Plc, the world's second-largest bank by market value, shed 0.8 percent to HK$126.50. The lender said it set aside $6.1 billion last year to cover loans that may not be repaid, up from $1.3 billion in 2002. HSBC yesterday said second-half profit increased 58 percent to a record $4.67 billion. Hang Seng Bank Ltd., which is 62 percent owned by HSBC, said profit for 2003 fell 4 percent, missing the median estimate of six analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. The stock slid 2.3 percent to HK$106.50. ///www.bloomberg.com