Stocks: Monday’s review

Asian stocks climbed, extending the longest run of weekly gains since 2005, after Greece’s parliament approved austerity measures to help secure a second debt bailout.

Nikkei 225 8,999.18 +52.01 +0.58%

Hang Seng 20,887.4 +103.54 +0.50%

S&P/ASX 200 4,285.14 +39.81 +0.94%

Shanghai Composite 2,351.85 -0.13 -0.01%

Tokyo Electric gained 1 percent to 202 yen. The shares rallied as much as 8 percent after Japan’s government agreed to give $8.9 billion to support compensation payments for the Fukushima nuclear disaster, averting the risk the utility will have its stock delisted.

Nitto Denko Corp.  jumped 4 percent to 3,155 yen in Tokyo after Nomura Holdings Inc. raised its recommendation for the shares to “buy” from “neutral.”

Chinese banks rose after reported comments by Premier Wen comments sparked speculation the government may further ease monetary policy. Economic circumstances in the first quarter deserve attention, Wen told business executives last week in Beijing, the official Xinhua News Agency reported yesterday.

Among shares that fell, China Resources Land Ltd., a property developer, dropped 6.2 percent to HK$13.92. The shares slipped after new lending in China missed estimates in January and the eastern city of Wuhu backtracked on proposals to ease real-estate market controls.

European stocks advanced the most in more than a week after Greek lawmakers approved austerity measures needed to get the financial rescue the nation seeks. Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos won parliamentary approval for the spending cuts after rioters protesting the measures battled police and set fire to buildings in downtown Athens. A total of 199 lawmakers voted for and 74 against the austerity plans.

Germany sold 3.01 billion euros of six-month bills at an average yield of 0.0761 percent, up from a negative yield at a sale on Jan. 9. Italy’s borrowing costs fell at a debt auction today. The Rome-based Treasury sold 8.5 billion euros of 365-day bills and 3.5 billion euros of 127-day bills at rates lower than in the previous sales.

National benchmark indexes climbed in 16 of the 18 western- European markets today. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index added 0.9 percent. France’s CAC 40 Index gained 0.3 percent and Germany’s DAX Index rose 0.7 percent.

A gauge of mining shares rallied 1.5 percent for the best performance on the Stoxx 600 as copper rebounded from the biggest drop in a month. Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining companies, added 2 percent to 3,845.5 pence and 1.2 percent to 2,082.5 pence, respectively. Anglo American Plc added 2.6 percent to 2,817 pence.

Cable & Wireless Worldwide surged 45 percent to 28.54 pence after Vodafone, the world’s largest mobile-phone company, said it is in an early stage of evaluating a potential bid for the company. An offer, if made, may be in cash, Vodafone said.

National Bank of Greece jumped 9 percent to 2.92 euros, extending its gains this year to 80 percent. Commerzbank, Germany’s second-largest lender, climbed 1.6 percent to 2.09 euros. UBS AG, Switzerland’s biggest bank, rose 1.6 percent to 12.93 Swiss francs. Lloyds added 2.3 percent to 35.30 pence.

Banks in France fell after the government ended a ban on short-selling in the stocks 10 banks and insurance companies, the country’s markets regulator said today. Credit Agricole SA fell 3.6 percent to 5.13 euros and BNP Paribas SA dropped 2.1 percent to 34.33 euros. Societe Generale SA slid 2.2 percent to 22.74 euros.

U.S. stocks rose, after the first weekly loss for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index in 2012, as Greece approved austerity plans to secure rescue funds.

Global stocks gained today as Germany and the European Commission welcomed Greek approval of the austerity steps demanded for a financial lifeline, suggesting euro finance chiefs will pull Greece back from the brink when they meet in two days.

Dow 12,874.04 +72.81 +0.57%, Nasdaq 2,931.39 +27.51 +0.95%, S&P 500 1,351.77 +9.13 +0.68%

Bank of America (ВАС) rose 2.2 percent to $8.25. JPMorgan (JPM) advanced 1.8 percent to $38.30.

Apple added 1.9 percent to $502.60, after rallying for four straight weeks. On Jan. 24, the largest technology company reported quarterly profit that more than doubled. The gain since Apple reported results is almost four times as large as the advance in the Nasdaq 100 Index.

Chesapeake added 2.4 percent to $22.66. The sales will help the company reduce debt and fund its drilling operations as it faces gas prices that hit a 10-year low in New York last month. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Aubrey McClendon has vowed to cut long-term debt 25 percent by year end as the company reduces output.

Advanced Micro Devices surged 3.4 percent to $7.29. The maker of processors for personal computers was raised to “outperform” from “market perform” at Sanford C. Bernstein.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. jumped 12 percent, the most in the Russell 1000 Index, to $114.65 as the company raised its sales forecast for the eye drug Eylea to exceed analyst estimates.