TOKYO, July 8 — Asian stocks rose, with the regional benchmark heading for a third day of gains, as the yen weakened, boosting the earnings outlook for Japanese exporters, and US jobs growth increased more than forecast.

Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s largest carmaker which gets 75 per cent of its sales outside Japan, advanced 1.1 per cent. BHP Billiton Ltd., the biggest mining company, fell 1.1 per cent in Sydney as metals prices retreated the most in two months. Asiana Airlines Inc. tumbled 4.7 per cent in Seoul after one of its planes crashed at San Francisco International Airport.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index advanced 0.2 per cent to 131.62 as of 9:30am in Tokyo, before markets open in Hong Kong and China. Eight of the 10 industry groups on the gauge climbed. Japan’s Topix index rose one per cent, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.2 per cent and South Korea’s Kospi index increased 0.3 per cent.

“We are still overweight equities,” Khiem Do, head of Asian multi-asset strategy at Baring Asset Management, which oversees about US$51 billion (RM153 billion), said in a Bloomberg TV interview in Hong Kong.

“The employment data was a lot stronger than people had expected. We are long Japanese equities and short the yen and we’ll stay with that trade for at least another twelve to six months because the reflation of Japan is still being implemented.”

US futures

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.3 per cent today. Alcoa Inc. will unofficially start the second-quarter US earnings season as the aluminium producer reports results after the market closes in New York today.

The MSCI Asia Pacific index, the benchmark regional equities gauge, fell nine per cent through last week from a five- year high on May 20 amid concern the Fed will begin tapering stimulus as China’s economy slows and Japan puts off unveiling economic reform policies until after upper house elections later this month.

That left the Asia-Pacific gauge trading at 12.8 times average estimated earnings on July 5 compared with 14.8 for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index and 12.8 times for the Stoxx Europe 600 Index, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Futures contracts on the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland Chinese companies trading in Hong Kong retreated 1.8 per cent. The Bloomberg China-US Equity Index of the most-traded Chinese shares in the US rose one per cent in New York on July 5.

US payrolls rose by 195,000 workers for a second straight month, the Labour Department reported July 5 in Washington. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey projected a 165,000 gain after a previously reported 175,000 increase in May. The jobless rate stayed at 7.6 per cent, while hourly earnings in the year ended in June advanced by the most since July 2011.

Japan’s Topix index surged 4.8 per cent last week, capping its biggest three-week advance since April 2009, and the Nikkei 225 Stock Average climbed 4.6 per cent as the yen weakened beyond 100 to the dollar.

The yen slid 0.2 per cent to 101.44 per dollar as of 9:27 am in Tokyo.

The London Metal Exchange LMEX Metals Index declined 2.6 per cent on July 5, the most in two months. — Bloomberg