Asian stocks rise; Nissan leads advances in exporters

COMPUTERS GAIN

Computer-related companies, which account for almost a quarter of Japan's exports, also advanced. NEC Corp climbed 3.4 percent to ¥877. Japan's largest personal-computer maker gets a third of its sales from abroad.

Advantest advanced 3.7 percent to ¥8,980. The world's biggest maker of equipment used to test computer memory chips expects a twofold gain in operating profit this fiscal year because of rising sales, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported.

The TAIEX gained 0.3 percent to 6545.54. It added 6.7 percent this week. United Microelectronics Corp (聯電), the world's second-largest supplier of made-to-order chips, rose 0.7 percent to NT$29.50.

"Overseas suppliers will benefit" from US growth, said Mike Shiao, who manages US$45 million at Invesco Taiwan Ltd.

The Hang Seng gained 0.4 percent to 12,731.76, taking its advance this week to 2 percent. HSBC Holdings Plc added 0.4 percent to HK$117.50.

The world's second-biggest bank by market value got 36 percent of last year's sales in North America.

Singapore's Straits Times Index rose 0.5 percent to 1880.45.

Venture Corp, the island's biggest electronics maker for companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co, rose 2.5 percent to S$20.30. Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd (特許) climbed 3.8 percent to S$1.65.

The world's No. 4 supplier of made-to-order computer chips gets about two-thirds of its sales from the US.

The Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management said its purchasing managers' index increased 0.3 point from February to 53.4. A reading above 50 indicates production expanded.

ANTI-VIRUS SALES

Trend Micro Inc, the world's third-largest maker of anti-virus software, surged 11 percent to ¥4,180. UBS Securities Japan Ltd raised the earnings estimates for the year ending December to ¥87.6 per share from ¥78.8, citing confidence in its cost controls.

Mitsubishi Motors Corp, Japan's only unprofitable passenger carmaker, jumped 11 percent to ¥288.

The automaker, which had the biggest sales drop among automakers in the US last year, will get about ¥150 billion (US$1.4 billion) from Mitsubishi Corp and other Mitsubishi Group companies to help revive the brand, people familiar with the plan said.

Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd, India's biggest power-equipment maker, slid 2.3 percent to 622.70 rupees.

It reported full-year profit rose 38 percent to 6.15 billion rupees (US$140 million) from a year ago, less than the 6.4 billion rupees average estimate given by three analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.