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Emerging Stocks Trim Weekly Drop Before U.S. Data; Ruble Sinks

©2015 Bloomberg News
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(Bloomberg) — Emerging-market stocks pared a third weekly drop before a U.S. payrolls report as energy shares climbed with oil and bets grew that China will take more measures to stem a rout.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 0.2 percent to 886.57 at 11:27 a.m. in London, trimming this week’s slide to 1.7 percent. China Shenhua Energy Co. and Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. added more than 4 percent in Hong Kong as crude oil halted a two-day decrease. The Shanghai Composite Index advanced 2.3 percent, erasing a five-day retreat. Russia’s Micex increased 0.5 percent, while the ruble headed for its seventh weekly slump.

A U.S. payrolls report Friday may further strengthen the Federal Reserve’s case to raise the near-zero interest rates that have supported demand for riskier assets. China Securities Finance Corp., mandated to buy stocks to bolster the market, is seeking access to an additional 2 trillion yuan ($322 billion), said people with knowledge of the matter.

“I do think we will see more measures to support the Chinese market, but this is to the detriment of its long term investability,” said Tony Hann, a portfolio manager at Blackfriars Asset Management in London. “Conventional thinking is that a U.S. rate rise would be bad for emerging markets, as it would likely lead to a stronger dollar which is perceived as bearish for our region.”

Jobs Data

A Bloomberg gauge of 20 currencies slid for a seventh week, the longest stretch of losses since October. U.S. data Thursday showed jobless claims hovering near four-decade lows. The government’s report Friday is projected to reveal employers added 225,000 workers to payrolls last month.

Five out of 10 industry groups in the emerging-markets index rose, paced by advances in energy and technology shares. China Shenhua and Yanzhou Coal ended two days of losses.

The developing-nation measure has lost 7.3 percent this year and trades at 11.2 times projected 12-month earnings, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The MSCI World Index has risen 2.5 percent in 2015 and is valued at a multiple of 16.4.
Sasol Ltd., the world’s biggest producer of liquid fuels from coal, jumped 2.2 percent in Johannesburg after saying full- year profit fell as much as 19 percent, less than analysts estimated.

The FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index increased as much as 0.3 percent, taking a gain this week to 1 percent. The Micex was poised for an advance of 0.9 percent in the past five days.

Supply Surplus

Oil pared a weekly decline in New York, with futures rising 0.3 percent, amid speculation that prices are too low to sustain a supply surplus. Russia derives about 50 percent of its revenue from crude and gas.

The ruble weakened to 64.2540 versus the dollar, extending its five-day depreciation to 4 percent, as ING Groep NV and VTB Capital said its retreat with oil has gone too far.

A 14 percent slump since the end of June, the most among 31 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg, has pushed the ruble’s relative strength index below 30 for the past week, the threshold signaling to some technical analysts that an asset is oversold.
China Construction Bank Corp. led a 1.2 percent increase in Hong Kong’s Hang Seng China Enterprises Index. The Shanghai Composite Index climbed for the first time in three days. The gauge has advanced 2.2 percent this week.
The extra funding China Securities Finance is seeking would add to the 3 trillion yuan already made available by the government, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the target hasn’t been made public.
The government has spent as much as 900 billion yuan ($145 billion) in the past two months to prop up the nation’s stock prices, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

The premium investors demand to hold emerging-market debt over U.S. Treasuries widened one basis point to 373, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. indexes.

To contact the reporters on this story: Anuchit Nguyen in Bangkok at anguyen@bloomberg.net; Zahra Hankir in London at zhankir@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Daliah Merzaban at dmerzaban@bloomberg.net Zahra Hankir, Robert Brand

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Men of Value Contributor

Men of Value Contributor

Articles by various contributors to Men of Value, an online magazine for American men who value our Judeo-Christian values of faith, family, and freedom.

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