Li & Fung Ltd. (494), a supplier of toys and clothes to Wal-Mart Stores Inc., climbed 1.3 percent in Hong Kong. Samsung Electronics Co., South Korea’s biggest consumer electronics maker, gained 2.4 percent. Hitachi Chemical Co. jumped 5.4 percent as Credit Suisse Group AG raised its rating to outperform, the equivalent of buy, after the company forecast higher profits in the year ending March 2013.

“The Federal Reserve didn’t rule out the possibility of additional monetary easing,” said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees about $600 million in Tokyo at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “That’s leading to confidence among investors.”

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 0.5 percent to 124.20 as of 11:55 a.m. in Tokyo, with about three shares rising for every two that fell. Trading volumes in Japan and Hong Kong were at least 20 percent less than the 30-day average, while those in China were about 47 percent above, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Asian stocks extended a global rally spurred by better-than-estimated profits at companies from Apple Inc. to Boeing Co.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average (NKY) added 0.1 percent, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 0.5 percent as it resumed trading following yesterday’s holiday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index increased 0.5 percent, while China’s Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.1 percent, erasing gains of as much as 0.3 percent.

U.S. Economy

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.1 percent today. The index gained 1.4 percent in New York yesterday as Bernanke said the Fed stands ready to add to its stimulus if necessary even after leaving its policy unchanged and upgrading its view of the U.S. economy for this year.

Asian exporters advanced after Fed policy makers said they expect growth will gradually accelerate, while refraining from new action to lower borrowing costs. Central bankers upgraded their forecasts for economic growth and unemployment while repeating their view that borrowing costs are likely to remain “exceptionally low” at least through late 2014.

Li & Fung, which gets about 60 percent of sales from the U.S., increased 1.3 percent to HK$16.80 in Hong Kong. Yue Yuen Industrial Holdings Ltd. (551), a maker of shoes for Nike Inc., gained 0.8 percent to HK$25.70. Honda Motor Co. (7267), a carmaker that counts North America as its largest market, rose 1.4 percent to 2,910 yen in Tokyo.

South Korean GDP

South Korea’s Kospi Index gained 0.3 percent. A report showed the nation’s economic growth accelerated to 0.9 percent in the first quarter from the previous three months, meeting economists’ estimates.

Samsung Electronics rose 2.4 percent to 1.336 million won in Seoul. Hyundai Motor Co. (005380), South Korea’s biggest carmaker, climbed 2.9 percent to 2.65 million won.

Hitachi Chemical advanced 5.4 percent to 1,495 yen in Tokyo. Credit Suisse raised its rating to buy from neutral, saying the company is benefiting from rising demand for raw materials needed to make touch screens. Hitachi Chemical said yesterday it expects operating profit in the year ending March 2013 will increase 47 percent.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) gained 8.5 percent this year through yesterday, compared with a 10.6 percent advance by the S&P 500 and a 5.1 percent increase by the Stoxx Europe 600 Index. Stocks in the Asian benchmark are valued at 12.6 times estimated earnings on average, compared with a multiple of 13.3 for the S&P 500 and 10.7 times for the Stoxx 600.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at jburgos4@bloomberg.net; Norie Kuboyama in Tokyo at nkuboyama@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: John McCluskey at j.mccluskey@bloomberg.net

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-04-26/asian-stocks-rise-on-bernanke-remarks-south-korean-gdp.html

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