Asian stocks climbed for the first time in four days, while copper and oil paced gains among commodities on speculation the Federal Reserve will take steps to bolster the U.S. recovery and after a gauge showed China’s manufacturing contracted at a slower pace.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index jumped 1 percent at 1:26 p.m. in Tokyo. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures added 0.7 percent. Copper advanced 0.8 percent, oil rose for a second day in New York, while gold topped $1,910 an ounce for the first time. The Markit iTraxx Asia index of costs for insuring the region’s bonds from default headed for its highest close since May 2010. The Australian and New Zealand dollars strengthened.
Asian shares are rebounding from the lowest levels since September before central bankers meet this week in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Last year, Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke’s hint of a second round of asset purchases triggered a 28 percent rally in the S&P 500. Preliminary data showed an index of Chinese output may have climbed to 49.8 in August from 49.3 in July. Separate reports will probably show German manufacturing grew at a slower pace and U.S. home sales declined.
“All the focus is going to be on Friday’s presentation and what, if anything, Ben Bernanke is going to” do to shore up U.S. growth, said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategist at Philadelphia-based Janney Montgomery Scott LLC, which manages $54 billion. “It’s dangerous to presume we’re going to hear anything definitive. All in, things are going to remain fairly volatile,” he said in a Bloomberg Television interview.
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