TOKYO- Asian stocks rose on Thursday as investors hunted for bargains among recently beaten-down shares, while the yen pulled further away from 15-year highs as investors wondered whether Japanese officials would take fresh steps to curb the currency's strength and spur economic growth. European stocks opened nearly a percent higher after hitting a five-week closing low in the previous session, drawing strength from a late rebound on Wall Street overnight, but with some caution lingering over the outlook for the economy. Exposure to riskier assets continued to weigh on markets after US data on Wednesday heightened fears that the world's biggest economy may be at risk of sliding back into recession. US new home sales slumped to the slowest pace on record in July and durable goods orders were weaker than expected, suggesting growth could slow sharply without more government or central bank support. "There are increasing signs of a slowing global economy, and on top of that you have Japan's situation where it really isn't providing policy to deal with its economic issues," said Kenichi Hirano, operating officer at Tachibana Securities. "Otherwise, why is the Nikkei performing so poorly? As corporate earnings showed, the economy itself is not doing badly enough to warrant the current weakness in shares, but the lack of clarity on the yen's strength is not good." The Nikkei rose 0.7 per cent, lifted by what market players said was short-covering and buying of futures by long-term domestic investors, after hitting a 16-month closing low on Wednesday. But gains were capped by doubts about how much policymakers could really do to turn the ailing economy around, as well as fears of longer-term policy inaction prompted by a murky political outlook. Japan's government will urge the Bank of Japan to ease monetary policy further as part of a package of steps to stem the yen's rise and support the economy, the Asahi newspaper said, ratcheting up pressure on the central bank to take action before a policy meeting next month. Japan has also not ruled out market intervention to weaken the yen, though markets largely doubt such a move or further symbolic BOJ policy easing would have much effect. The benchmark Nikkei broke below 9,000 this week for the first time since May 2009. The 9,000 to 9,100 area had been strong support since last year, and market players say there will be few technical targets to break the benchmark's further falls. The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan rose more than half a per cent, led by consumer staples and healthcare, while those most sensitive to business cycles such as technology eked out smaller gains. The regional gauge hit a 1-month low in the previous session and is down about 4 percent so far this year, but has held up better than the all-country world index, which has fallen 7 per cent. Asia's strong economic growth apart from Japan has been a buffer against recent global shocks, with emerging markets continuing to attract foreign investors despite a broader aversion to riskier assets for much of the year. Investors are awaiting US jobless claims data, due later in the day, and watching for news from the Federal Reserve's yearly conference at Jackson Hole, Wyoming this week, though analysts do not expect Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke to give many clues on specific plans. The gathering takes place at a time when US gross domestic product revisions are likely to show the world's largest economy grew much more slowly in the second quarter than originally reported. Both US and UK GDP revision figures are set to be announced on Friday.
