By Linus Chua and Saeromi Shin March 8 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose to a six-week high, the euro strengthened and concerns about defaults receded as French President Nicolas Sarkozy pledged support for Greece and government reports showed economic growth accelerating. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 1.9 percent to 122.56 at 8:40 a.m. in London, with eight stocks rising for every one that fell. The cost of protecting Asian bonds from default dropped to the lowest in seven weeks and the euro advanced to a two-week high against the yen. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures were little changed. The Stoxx Euro 600 index rose 0.1 percent. Markets rallied after Sarkozy said yesterday the euro region is ready to rescue Greece should the government struggle to fund its budget deficit, and a March 5 U.S. report showed fewer job losses than economists forecast. New Zealand manufacturing sales increased the most in more than seven years during the fourth quarter and Japan posted a current-account surplus in January as exports climbed for a second month. “Investors are starting to see what they really wanted to see and the negatives are in the process of being priced in as the Euro zone will promise support,” said Chu Moon Sung, a fund manager at Shinhan BNP Paribas Asset Management Co. in Seoul, which manages $26 billion. “The better-than-expected U.S. jobs report also boosted overall investors’ optimism.” Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index and Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average increased 2.1 percent, South Korea’s Kospi Index climbed 1.6 percent. Sony Corp., which gets almost a quarter of its sales in the U.S., jumped 2.8 percent. Nissan Motor Co., which gets more than a third of its revenue in North America, advanced 4.7 percent. BHP, Arrow BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company, rose 2.4 percent after winning a 55 percent price increase in coking coal from JFE Holdings Inc.’s steel unit. Arrow Energy Ltd. soared 47 percent after the Australian coal-seam gas producer said it received a takeover offer worth more than A$3.3 billion ($3 billion) from an entity formed by Royal Dutch Shell Plc and PetroChina Co. S&P 500 futures for delivery this month rose to 1,138.80. Last week’s 3.1 percent rally in the U.S. benchmark erased this year’s loss. The measure is up 2.1 percent in 2010. Nonfarm payrolls declined by 36,000 in February compared to 68,000, the average estimate of 82 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The Markit iTraxx Asia index of 50 investment-grade borrowers outside Japan dropped 4 basis points to 98 basis points, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc prices show. That’s the lowest since Jan. 19, according to CMA DataVision. The Markit CDX North America Investment-Grade Index, linked to credit-default swaps on 125 companies, dropped 6 basis points last week to 85.4 basis points, the lowest since Jan. 20, CMA DataVision prices show. ‘Positive Sentiment’ “The overall positive sentiment is being driven by concrete evidence that the U.S. economic recovery has traction,” said Geoffrey Ng, who manages $1 billion as chief executive officer at HLG Asset Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur. “This further supports the view that Asia’s growth is sustainable, both from the domestic and export fronts.” The 16-nation euro rose to as high as 123.84 yen, the strongest level since Feb. 23, from 123.00 yen in New York on March 5. The euro rose to $1.3687 from $1.3626. Sarkozy’s pledge is among the strongest by a European Union leader to signal the bloc would bail out Greece. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker said European officials are lucky that the euro region’s first major crisis was sparked by one of its smaller members and he’s confident the currency will survive. “I’m still a believer in the euro,” Volcker said in an interview in Berlin March 6. ‘Classic Reversal’ “We are seeing a classic reversal of the yen, having been the preeminent safe-haven currency in recent weeks,” said Ray Attrill, global research director at Forecast Ltd. in Sydney. The Malaysian ringgit rose 0.6 percent to 3.3428 per dollar, reaching its strongest level in almost seven weeks, after January exports rose the most in 11 years. South Korea’s won climbed 0.7 percent to 1,132.53. Copper for three-month delivery gained 0.5 percent to $7,580 a metric ton, extending its 2 percent increase on Friday. The Baltic Dry Index, a measure of shipping costs for commodities, jumped 3.9 percent on Friday to 3,242, the highest level since Jan. 18. Crude oil rose for a second day on speculation improving world demand and OPEC supply restrictions will help slow growth in stockpiles. Oil rose 0.6 percent to $82.02 a barrel in New York ahead of a report tomorrow in the U.S., the world’s largest oil consumer, that will probably show consumer confidence is at its highest in a month, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists. To contact the reporters for this story: Linus Chua at lchua@bloomberg.net; Saeromi Shin in Seoul at sshin15@bloomberg.net.

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