Asian shares rise, growth worries cap

TOKYO (Reuters):Asian shares rose on Tuesday but were capped by concerns over global growth prospects, especially in the world’s second-biggest economy China, and expected weak U.S. corporate earnings.

 The International Monetary Fund cut its global growth forecast on Tuesday to a 3.3 percent expansion for 2012, down from its July estimate of 3.5 percent, making it the slowest year of growth since 2009. It warned U.S. and European policymakers that failure to fix their economic ills would prolong the slump. 

The IMF also said on Tuesday that China’s economic growth is expected to weaken to 7.8 percent this year, warning of risks to emerging Asia if the euro zone crisis worsens and the United States does not avoid its “fiscal cliff”.  The IMF’s World Economic Outlook preceded its twice-yearly meeting scheduled in Tokyo later this week, and followed a similarly grim report from the World Bank, which on Monday cut forecasts for the East Asia and Pacific region. It said the slowdown in China could worsen and last longer than expected.

 The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.6 percent. Australian shares  rose 0.5 percent, climbing to a fresh 14-month high, as a 6 percent jump in iron ore prices lifted miners and helped offset concerns about global economic growth.

 However, Tokyo’s Nikkei stock average resumed trading after a holiday on Monday with a 0.3 percent drop.  Japanese corporate earnings season begins later in the month.

  “Asian equities markets are feeling the positive effects from the recent global easing, prompting investors to buy the region’s stocks which have remained undervalued,” said Hirokazu Yuihama, a senior strategist at Daiwa Securities.

 “Weak third-quarter corporate earnings, as well as a slowdown in Chinese growth rate to below or around 8 percent have already been noted in various reports. But the outlook for sluggish fundamentals will likely limit the markets’ upside.” U.S. equities fell on Monday ahead of corporate earnings reporting season which starts Tuesday, as analysts forecast  third-quarter earnings to fall for the first time in three years.  Oil prices recovered, with U.S. crude oil futures rising 1.1 percent to $90.28 a barrel and Brent climbing 0.8 percent to $112.73.  London copper rose 0.7 percent to $8,238 a tonne.