Japanese Stocks Rose for a Third Day After Better-Than-Estimated Data on Machinery Orders

Japanese stocks rose for a third day after better-than-estimated data on the nation’s machinery orders. Oil and the New Zealand dollar declined as Chinese exports grew at a slower pace than economists’ forecasts. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average (NKY) climbed 0.5 percent as of 9: 45 a. M. In Tokyo. Three stocks gained for every two that dropped in the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which slipped less than 0.1 percent. Oil retreated 0.4 percent to $106.99 a barrel. New Zealand’s currency weakened 0.5 percent, while the U. S. Dollar traded near a 10-month high versus the yen. Japanese machinery orders rose 3.4 percent in January, exceeding projections for a 2.3 percent increase, according to government data. China reported the biggest trade deficit in at least 22 years on March 10, adding to data on factory production and retail sales last week that signaled slowing economic growth. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao will close an annual gathering of the legislature this week. Currency trading may have risen to a record $5 trillion a day in September, surpassing the peak reached before Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. ’s collapse in 2008, according to the Bank for International Settlements. Trading then declined to about $4.7 billion a day in October and is likely to have fallen considerably in early 2012, the bank said in a report. The MSCI Asia-Pacific gauge slid 1 percent last week, ending a record run of 11 weekly advances. The valuation for the equity benchmark reached 15 times estimated earnings in February, the highest level in almost two years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index and South Korea’s Kospi Index (KOSPI) lost 0.4 percent today. China’s exports rose 18.4 percent last month from a year earlier, trailing projections for a 31.1 percent increase, based on a government data released March 10. Source: bloomberg.com