Reply #24: Asian Stocks Gain, Led by Aiful and ANZ Bank; PetroChina Falls [View All]

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601080&sid=ajgzxC7YQJTE&refer=asia

Nov. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose for the first time in four days, led by Aiful Corp., after consumer spending unexpectedly climbed in Japan and investors judged that recent declines were excessive.

Aiful Corp., Japan's biggest lender to individuals, rose 1.3 percent and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. climbed from a three-month low. PetroChina Co., the world's largest company by market value, slid to a five-week low after crude oil and metal prices declined.

``The market has sold off excessively and we are looking for buying opportunities,'' said Leslie Phang, who helps manage $1 billion at Commonwealth Private Bank in Singapore. ``The question is will the slowing economy derail demand for commodities? Current price levels are not sustainable.''

The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia Pacific Index added 0.1 percent to 158.49 as of 6:52 p.m. in Tokyo, after a three-day, 5.4 percent slump. A measure of financial shares climbed the most among the benchmark's 10 industry groups.

Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average slid 0.5 percent to 15,126.63, its eighth straight loss. The measure earlier gained as much as 0.3 percent after the Cabinet Office said the economy expanded an annualized 2.6 percent in the quarter ended Sept. 30.

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