* Corporate earnings, central banks in focus
* Asian stocks up 0.6 pct, Nikkei up almost 1 percent
* Euro holds near two-month high, Aussie down after CPI
(Adds comment, Indian rates decision, updates prices)
By Daniel Magnowski
SINGAPORE, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Asian stocks rose on Tuesday,
with the Nikkei gaining more than 1 percent , on
optimism that companies will report strong earnings, while the
euro held near a two-month high.
The euro could get a further boost if the U.S. Federal
Reserve maintains a cautious view of the U.S. economic recovery
after a two-day policy meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Markets are increasingly speculating that the European
Central Bank will lift interest rates ahead of the Fed, after
recent tough comments by ECB chief Jean Claude Trichet about the
need to keep inflation in check.
"Optimism about euro zone policymakers' determination
to continue working toward enhancing the European Financial
Stability Facility and finding a longer term resolution to the
region's sovereign debt crisis remains in place," said Michael
Woolfolk, strategist at BNY Mellon.
Japan's Nikkei average rose for a second straight
session, advancing 1.2 percent , lifted not only by
gains in New York and London overnight but by local optimism
ahead of major corporate earnings reports.
Exporters including Canon and Kyocera are
due to report this week, which could set the tone for earnings
season which will last until early February. Canon rose 0.7
percent on Tuesday, while Kyocera added 1.8 percent .
"This isn't going to be a regular earnings season," said
Masayoshi Okamoto, head of dealing at Jujiya Securities.
"Stocks have risen a lot over the quarter and strong
earnings are at least partly priced in by investors, so they
will not only want to see the figures for the quarter but also
how those firms can sustain growth in the long run."
The Bank of Japan, ending a two-day policy meeting, kept
monetary policy extremely loose as expected, and reviewed its
long-term forecasts.
The central bank upwardly revised its consumer price
forecast for the fiscal year beginning in April, reflecting the
impact of recent rises in commodity prices, while roughly
maintaining its economic growth forecasts.
The MSCI index of Asian stocks outside Japan
rose 0.5 percent after recording its worst weekly
performance in almost two months last week. It is down 1 percent
for the month.
Shares of resource companies gained on a rise in industrial
metals prices, with the MSCI ex-Japan materials index up 0.8
percent.
Worries about mounting inflationary pressures have spooked
some investors into selling out of emerging Asian markets and
taking profits after strong rallies in 2010, but rather than
leaving the region completely investors are channelling money
towards countries seen as better placed to deal with price
pressures.
Indonesian bond yields have jumped and stocks have retreated
as investors cut their holdings, worried that the country, one
of the darlings of emerging market investors in recent years,
does not have a tight grip on inflation.
Investors in major emerging markets are also closely
watching India's battle against stubborn inflation, which has
been aggravated by surging global commodities prices and
domestic supply pressures . India's central bank as expected
raised key rates by 25 basis points on Tuesday, the seventh
increase in the past year.
EURO CLINGS TO GAINS
The euro held near a two-month peak in Asian trade,
hovering around $1.37 and bringing into focus its next
resistance level of $1.3742.
The single currency, which has risen 6 percent in the past
two weeks, was supported by hopes for a lasting solution to the
debt crisis in the euro zone, and talk that the ECB may raise
interest rates.
Demand from Asian central banks has also spurred wider
buying in the common currency. .
The Australian dollar fell by around 0.3 percent on
weaker than expected consumer price data, strengthening
expectations that the central bank is likely to keep interest
rates unchanged for some time.
Positive sentiment across the broader economy knocked gold
lower, with the metal falling to a 10-week low as demand from
risk-averse investors waned.
Spot gold slipped to $1,332 per ounce, well
down from the record high of $1.430.95 it touched in December.
U.S. crude futures fell for the sixth day running,
shedding 33 cents to $87.54 per barrel, on
expectations that stockpiles in the U.S. were rising
.
(Additional reporting by Antoni Slodkowski and Hideyuki
Sano in Tokyo; Editing by Kim Coghill)
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