* Stocks fall in Asia; Europe, U.S. seen opening weak
* Nikkei down 1.1 pct, MSCI ex-Japan off 0.6 percent
* Euro weak ahead of ECB rules on Greece
* Top Asian companies upbeat on 2010 prospects
By Raju Gopalakrishnan
SINGAPORE, April 8 (Reuters) - Asian stocks fell on
Thursday as investors took profits after strong gains in recent
weeks while the euro remained weak, waiting for the European
Central Bank to flesh out lending rules likely to support
debt-laden Greece.
European stocks were set to open weaker in line with Asian
and U.S. markets, although the focus will be on interest rate
decisions by the Bank of England and the ECB later in the day.
Spreadbetters forecast Britain's FTSE 100 <> opening
as much as 0.5 percent down, Germany's DAX <> down as
much as 0.3 percent and France's CAC 40 <> down as much as
0.7 percent.
S&P index futures <SPc1> were down 0.2 percent, implying a
weak start to U.S. trading later in the day after a 0.7 percent
fall in the Dow on Wednesday.
In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei index <> slipped 1.1 percent
to 11,168 points after reaching an 18-month high this week.
The MSCI's broad measure of shares in the Asia-Pacific
outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> was down 0.6 percent after
running up gains of 4.86 percent since the beginning of the
year, though traders expected any further declines to be
limited as regional economic growth remains strong.
Thai stocks lost 2.6 percent, hit by fears of unrest after
the government ordered a state of emergency to counter a
four-week opposition protest on the streets of Bangkok.
But Thai stocks, up over 10 percent this year, are seen
well-bolstered by an influx of foreign money into the market,
while, in Tokyo, analysts pointed to expectations for improving
corporate earnings as underpinning sentiment.
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http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/CM_20100804124052.jpg
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"Though it's still hard to say for sure, I think this is
just an adjustment," said Takashi Ushio, head of the investment
strategy division at Marusan Securities, of the day's fall.
"After all, we have (company) results really starting up in
about two weeks, and these are likely to prove supportive."
In Indonesia, stocks <> ended the morning down 1.8
percent after reports that the central bank may be considering
temporary capital controls after gains of 15 percent this year,
although a deputy governor clarified there were no such plans.
[]
The euro <EUR=> was weak around $1.33, its softest level in
two weeks, and hovering near its March trough of $1.3267, which
at the time was the lowest it had been since May.
Traders say loss-limiting sell orders would likely trigger
below that point and they then expect some support at round
numbers such as $1.3200 and $1.3100. But with the euro firmly
in a downtrend, $1.30 is seen as the next psychological point.
The European Central Bank meets later and the market is
waiting for it to flesh out new collateral rules that will
extend easier lending terms into 2011. []
An ECB official said the rules are not specifically
designed to help Greece, but the changes did remove the threat
hanging over the country that its sovereign debt might drop out
of the pool of collateral. []
The common currency was almost flat on the day, but has
lost almost 7 percent against the dollar since the beginning of
the year.
UNDERLYING SUPPORT
But there is underlying support in regional stock markets
with top Asian companies at their most optimistic since the
global financial crisis nearly two years ago.
A Reuters check-up of 100 leading Asian companies, from
Japan to India, showed government stimulus-fuelled recovery
across Asia had filtered through to the corporate sector, with
the technology and resources industries leading the pack.
[]
Of the 100 companies, 59 had a 'positive' to 'very
positive' rating on their six-month outlook, its highest since
Reuters started the review in mid-2009 and up from 38 in the
December review.
"It certainly looks like we are in growth mode now and that
companies are going to have record earnings in 2010," said Todd
Martin, Hong Kong-based Asia Equity Strategist at Societe
Generale.
The Australian dollar <AUD=D4> firmed after data showed
19,600 jobs were added in March and full-time employment
strengthened, all largely in line with forecasts but not enough
to muster buying support in anticipation of another rate hike
in May. []
It lacked momentum to test key resistance at $0.9300, with
talk of options-related selling near that level ahead of
expiries expected later in the day.
Oil and gold both slipped in Asian trade. Gold <XAU=> was
at about $1,146.45 an ounce after climbing as high as $1,152.75
an ounce, its strongest since mid-January, in New York on
Wednesday on worries about Greece's fiscal problems.
London copper futures extended losses, pulling back from a
20-month high struck this week on fears a rally of nearly 10
percent over the past two weeks had run ahead of itself.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange <CMCU3>
dipped as low as $7,871, having touched $8,005 in the previous
session and $8,010 on Tuesday, its highest since August 2008.
(Editing by Vikram S Subhedar)
