Azernews.Az

By Bloomberg

Emerging-market stocks rose as Cnooc Ltd. led a gauge of energy shares to an eight-week high. Malaysia’s ringgit paced gains for developing-nation currencies.

Cnooc surged to a nine-week high in Hong Kong after oil capped the biggest four-day rally since 2009 yesterday. Stocks in Malaysia, Asia’s only major net exporter of oil, climbed 1.2 percent, while shares in Qatar and Abu Dhabi added at least 1.1 percent. The ringgit and South Korea’s won strengthened the most since 2013. Russia’s ruble halted a two-day gain. Kaisa Group Holdings Ltd. bonds surged by records after Sunac China Holdings Ltd. agreed to buy a stake in the troubled Chinese developer.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index added 0.8 percent to 983.89 at 8:05 a.m in London, its third day of increases. Brent crude entered a bull market yesterday after soaring 24 percent from a six-year low reached in January. Oil retreated today before data that may show stockpiles in the U.S. rose last week.

“Everything seems to be co-related to oil,” Gerald Ambrose, who oversees the equivalent of $3.6 billion as managing director at Aberdeen Asset Management Sdn., said by phone in Kuala Lumpur. “This could lead to a rally in the short term.”

The developing-nation gauge has risen 3.1 percent this year and trades at 11.7 times projected 12-month earnings, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The MSCI World Index has climbed 0.6 percent in 2015 and is valued at a multiple of 16.2.

All 10 industry groups in the emerging-markets measure advanced, as a gauge of energy companies jumped 1.4 percent. Cnooc, China’s biggest offshore oil and gas producer, increased 4.5 percent. SapuraKencana Petroleum Bhd. surged 6.7 percent as the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index rose the most since Dec. 22.

Ringgit Surges

The ringgit added 1.5 percent, the most since September 2013, as concerns eased the nation’s finances will deteriorate. The won advanced 1.2 percent, the steepest increase since July 2013. Indonesia’s rupiah strengthened 0.3 percent.

Qatar’s equity gauge climbed 1.6 percent to the highest level since Dec. 29, while Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index gained for a second day. Russia’s Micex Index traded little changed and the ruble weakened 1.3 percent.

Philippine equities jumped 1.4 percent to a record. Adrian Mowat, the chief Asian and emerging market equity strategist at JP Morgan Chase & Co., said the nation’s shares will gain for a seventh straight year in 2015, driven by corporate earnings growth.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises Index closed little changed. The Shanghai Composite Index retreated 1 percent, erasing earlier gains, as a gauge of China’s services industry expanded at the weakest pace in six months.

Kaisa’s $500 million of 10.25 percent 2020 notes jumped 17.8 cents to 77.27 cents on the dollar as of 3:03 p.m. in Hong Kong, according to Bloomberg-compiled prices. Its $800 million of 8.875 percent notes advanced 16.5 cents to 76.46.

Sunac said it has signed an agreement to buy 49.3 percent of the Chinese developer and will make a general offer. The deal may help Kaisa avoid becoming the first Chinese developer to default on a dollar bond.

Equity measures in Taiwan, Vietnam, South Korea and Thailand rose at least 0.5 percent.