NEW YORK SHARES

Asian and European stocks rose, the Australian dollar strengthened and oil advanced amid speculation policy makers will take more steps to stimulate economic growth. Yields on U.S. Treasuries and Japanese bonds climbed.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.3 percent as of 8:28 a.m. in London. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index advanced 1.4 percent, rising for the first time in five days while futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index gained 0.1 percent. The Australian dollar rose for a second day and crude oil in New York climbed 0.7 percent. Yields on 10-year Treasuries increased three basis points to 1.55 percent.

Leaders from the Group of Seven countries will hold a conference call to discuss the European debt crisis today ahead of the G-20 meeting this month. The Reserve Bank of Australia lowered its key interest rate today by 25 basis points to 3.5 percent, the lowest level since 2009. China’s insurance regulator said it will allow insurers’ to broaden their investment scope, and four Taiwan government-controlled funds bought stocks yesterday to help pare losses, according to the Taipei-based Commercial Times.

“We are likely to see a reasonably strong policy response in a number of countries,” said Angus Gluskie, managing director at White Funds Management in Sydney, who manages more than $350 million. “It’s stacking up to be a reasonably good buying opportunity.”

MSCI Asia Pacific Index rebounded from the lowest close since November, as declines yesterday dragged down valuations on the region’s benchmark to 11.2 times estimated earnings on average, the lowest this year.

Qantas Tumbles

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index (AS51) advanced 1.5 percent after central bank Governor Glen Steven’s second rate cut in as many meetings. Thirteen of 27 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News predicted the move, while four forecast a half-point reduction and 10 expected borrowing costs to remain unchanged.

“The RBA has put more weight on global factors,” said Matthew Sherwood, Perpetual Investments’ head of investment markets research in Sydney. Perpetual manages funds of about $23 billion. “The bank is clearly worried about the outlook for Europe and households domestically are showing cautionary behavior.”

Qantas Airways Ltd. (QAN), Australia’s largest carrier, plunged to a record low in Sydney after saying annual profit may decline as much as 91 percent amid mounting losses on international routes and increased fuel costs. Qantas slumped as much as 19.7 percent before trading at A$1.16.

Shanghai Composite

Taiwan’s Taiex Index (TWSE) climbed 1.5 percent amid speculation the government will take steps to bolster equities.

Taiwanese lawmakers are trying to find a compromise solution among 20 draft bills and 10 versions of a capital gains tax on stock trading, the official Central News Agency reported yesterday.

Searches for “Shanghai Composite” were blocked from China’s most-used microblogging service after the stock index’s drop on the 23rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown corresponded to the date of the event. The Shanghai Composite Index dropped by 64.89 points yesterday, matching the date on which Chinese authorities crushed student-led protests on June 4, 1989. The gauge added 0.2 percent today.

Korea’s Kospi Index (KOSPI) advanced 1.1 percent, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average (NKY) gained 1 percent in Tokyo. Japan’s broader Topix Index (TPX), which entered a bear market yesterday as it plunged to a level not seen since 1983, added 1.8 percent.

Factory Orders Decline

The S&P 500 closed up less than 0.1 percent in New York yesterday after it fell 9.9 percent from a four-year high on April 2 through last week.

The Institute for Supply Management’s non-manufacturing index, which covers almost 90 percent of the economy, probably held at 53.5, matching April’s four-month low, according to median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg before a report from the Tempe, Arizona-based group today. Orders to U.S. factories unexpectedly declined 0.6 percent in April from the previous month, according to the Commerce Department report yesterday.

Oil for July delivery gained as much as 94 cents to $84.92 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was last at $84.45. The contract rose for a second day before a government report that may show crude stockpiles dropped for the first time in 11 weeks in the U.S., the world’s biggest consumer of the commodity. U.S. inventories probably slipped 1 million barrels last week as refineries increased gasoline output to meet peak summer consumption, according to the median estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg News survey before an Energy Department report tomorrow.

Aussie Dollar

The Australian dollar appreciated 0.5 percent to 97.79 U.S. cents. Yields on Australia’s 10-year securities rose 17 basis points to 2.94 percent while Japan’s 10-year rate was up four basis points at 0.86 percent from yesterday, when it touched 0.79 percent, the lowest since 2003.

The cost of insuring Asia-Pacific corporate and sovereign bonds from non-payment fell, according to traders of credit- default swaps. The Markit iTraxx Asia index of 40 investment- grade borrowers outside Japan dropped 4 basis points to 206 basis points, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc prices show. The gauge is set for its lowest close since May 31, according to data provider CMA.

To contact the reporters on this story: Mariko Ishikawa in Tokyo at mishikawa9@bloomberg.net; Adam Haigh in Sydney at ahaigh1@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Shelley Smith at ssmith118@bloomberg.net

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Asian Stocks Advance on Policy Stimulus Speculation; Oil Rises

Tomohiro Ohsumi/Bloomberg

In Seoul, the Kospi index gained 0.8 percent, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.5 percent in Tokyo. Japan’s broader Topix Index, which entered a bear market yesterday as it plunged to a level not seen since 1983, added 1 percent.

In Seoul, the Kospi index gained 0.8 percent, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.5 percent in Tokyo. Japan’s broader Topix Index, which entered a bear market yesterday as it plunged to a level not seen since 1983, added 1 percent. Photographer: Tomohiro Ohsumi/Bloomberg

June 5 (Bloomberg) -- Simon Flood, chief investment officer at Lion Global Investors Ltd., talks about the impact of Europe's sovereign debt crisis on global financial markets and his investment strategy. He speaks from Singapore with Susan Li on Bloomberg Television's "First Up." (Source: Bloomberg)

June 5 (Bloomberg) -- David Cassidy, an equity strategist at UBS AG, talks about Australian stocks. He also discusses the local currency, central bank monetary policy, and Qantas Airways Ltd.'s profit forecast. He speaks from Sydney with Rishaad Salamat on Bloomberg Television's "On the Move Asia." (Source: Bloomberg)

June 5 (Bloomberg) -- Ajay Kapur, head of Asian equity strategy at Deutsche Bank AG, talks about Europe's sovereign debt crisis, the outlook for China's economy and his investment strategy. He speaks with Susan Li on Bloomberg Television's "Asia Edge." (Source: Bloomberg)

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