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GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks rise as slowing China growth boosts stimulus prospects

Published 2016-01-19, 08:12 a/m
© Reuters.  GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks rise as slowing China growth boosts stimulus prospects
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* Stocks rise in Europe and Asia after China data
* Miners lead Europe higher
* Oil rises on Chinese fuel demand, metals up
* Dollar rises vs safe-haven yen

By Nigel Stephenson
LONDON, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Shares in Europe and Asia rose on
Tuesday and the dollar gained after data showing China's economy
grew last year at its slowest pace in a quarter of a century led
investors to anticipate more efforts by Beijing to spur growth.
Wall Street, closed on Monday for the Martin Luther King Day
holiday, looked set to open higher, with index futures spC1
1YMc1 up 1.6 percent.
Oil prices rose after strong Chinese fuel demand halted a
slide to 2003 lows triggered by the lifting at the weekend of
sanctions on Iran, while metals prices also gained.
Concerns about Chinese authorities' ability to rebalance the
slowing economy have rattled investors this year, after a plunge
in stock markets and the yuan currency raised concerns growth
may be slowing more rapidly than previously thought.
China's economy grew 6.9 percent last year, and 6.8 percent
year-on-year in the fourth quarter, data showed, down from 6.9
percent in the third and the weakest pace since the first
quarter of 2009.
In a harbinger of slower growth to come, December retail
sales, industrial output and fixed-asset investment all came in
below the expectations of analysts polled by Reuters.
As metals prices rose following the Chinese data, mining
company shares led European stocks higher, with the pan-European
FTSEurofirst 300 index .FTEU3 up 2.3 percent, rebounding from
a 13-month low hit on Monday.
The STOXX Europe 600 Basic Resources index .SXPP , which
includes miners, added 5.9 percent and Britain's miner-heavy
FTSE 100 index .FTSE rose 2.1 percent, with Anglo American
AAL.L up 11.5 percent and Glencore GLEN.L 12.8 percent.
"As figures weaken in absolute terms, we can potentially see
additional stimulus measures. That is helping investors'
appetite for risk," said Philippe Gijsels, head of research at
BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) Fortis Global Markets.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS rose 1.7 percent, bouncing off a four-year low.
Chinese shares rose on strengthened expectations of more
stimulus. The CSI 300 index of the largest listed companies in
Shanghai and Shenzhen .CSI300 closed up 3.0 percent while the
Shanghai Composite .SSEC gained 3.2 percent, after hitting a
13-month low on Monday.
Tommy Xie, economist at OCBC Bank in Singapore, said he
expected more stimulus from the Chinese central bank, but that
the stability of the yuan, also known as the renminbi, was
critical to maintaining growth.
"If the renminbi continues to weaken, the volatility and
capital outflows get worse, then that is likely to pose a
challenge to growth."
The yuan CNY=CFXS traded at 6.5769 to the dollar in
onshore markets, little changed from the previous close.
Earlier on Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund cut its
global growth forecast for the third time in less than a year,
to 3.4 percent in 2016 from 3.6 percent previously, citing a
sharp slowdown in Chinese trade and weak commodity prices.
In London, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said
adjustment in China was not over and would subdue global growth
and inflation for some time.
Expectations that Beijing will take further action, possibly
as soon as next month, helped the dollar gain against the
safe-haven Japanese yen, up 0.6 percent to 117.90 yen JPY= .
The euro EUR= fell 0.1 percent to $1.0879. The Australian
dollar, whose fortunes are closely linked to China, a major
market for Australia, rose 1.1 percent to $0.6935.
Sterling GBP= hit a seven-year low of $1.4207 after the
comments from Carney, who earlier said he had no set timetable
for when the BoE would raise interest rates and that inflation,
which was flat for 2015, would need to move "notably" towards
the bank's 2 percent target.
The rise in stock markets nudged yields on low-risk German
government bonds higher. Ten-year yields DE10YT=TWEB rose 3.2
basis points to 0.50 percent.
Oil prices took heart from data showing Chinese fuel demand
last year rose compared with 2014, up 2.5 percent to 10.32
million barrels a day.
Brent crude LCOc1 , the global benchmark, rose $1.08 a
barrel to $29.64. It hit lows not seen since 2003 on Monday on
the prospect of Iranian output swelling a global glut.
Copper CMCU3 , of which China is the major consumer, rose
1.4 percent to $4,439 a tonne, having earlier hit a one-week
high at $4,476 a tonne. Nickel prices also rose.
Gold XAU= dipped as risky assets advanced. It last traded
at $1,084.70 an ounce.

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