Asian Shares Mixed Monday 03/27 05:25

Asian Shares Mixed Monday              03/27 05:25

   Shares surged in Europe on Monday after a mixed session in Asia, with bank 
stocks mostly gaining after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said it had 
agreed to the sale of troubled Silicon Valley Bank to North Carolina-based 
First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co.

   BANGKOK (AP) -- Shares surged in Europe on Monday after a mixed session in 
Asia, with bank stocks mostly gaining after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. 
said it had agreed to the sale of troubled Silicon Valley Bank to North 
Carolina-based First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co.

   The FDIC took control of Silicon Valley Bank after it collapsed on March 10, 
promising to protect all depositors. Nasdaq-traded stock of First Citizens 
BancShares, Inc., parent company of First-Citizens, was up 12.4% in pre-market 
trading early Monday.

   The acquisition of Silicon Valley Bank lender could raise confidence in the 
troubled banking industry after failures at SVB and two other banks rattled 
investors, driving bank shares sharply lower.

   But concerns persist that higher interest rates that are squeezing lenders 
could increase the likelihood of a recession. Earlier this month, shares of and 
faith in Swiss bank Credit Suisse, which has its own unique set of troubles, 
fell so much that regulators brokered a takeover of it by rival UBS.

   Deutsche Bank, whose stock tumbled 8.5% in Germany on Friday on concerns 
over its financial health, gained 3.4% in early trading Monday.

   "So far, regulators and lawmakers have worked together to keep the crisis 
under control, and they have used all the help they could to do so," Naeem 
Aslam of Zaye Capital Markets said in a commentary. "This particular element is 
keeping the hope alive that whatever the issue was with Deutsche Bank, 
lawmakers are going to address it, as there is simply too much to lose if 
things are left alone."

   Germany's DAX jumped 0.9% to 15,094.95 and the CAC 40 in Paris gained 0.8% 
to 7,071.91. Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.5% at 7,445.35. The futures for the 
S&P 500 and for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.3%.

   The managing director of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina 
Georgieva, told a conference in Beijing on Sunday that risks to financial 
stability have risen as interest rates are raised to fight inflation. She said 
actions by central banks and other regulators have helped to ease strains on 
markets, "but uncertainty is high, which underscores the need for vigilance."

   Chinese markets declined after the government reported that industrial 
profits fell nearly 23% in the first two months of the year from a year earlier.

   Hong Kong's Hang Seng skidded 1.8% to 19,567.69 and the Shanghai Composite 
index lost 0.4% to 3,251.40.

   Tokyo's Nikkei 225 added 0.3% to 27,476.87 and the Kospi in Seoul shed 0.2% 
to 2,409.22. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% higher, to 6,962.00 and the 
Sensex in Mumbai gained 0.7%. Shares edged higher in Bangkok.

   On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.6%, marking its second straight weekly gain, 
and the Dow industrials added 0.4%. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.3% while the 
Russell 2000 index rose 0.9%.

   Investors are focused on what the Federal Reserve and other central banks 
will do with interest rates going forward after the recent spate of turmoil in 
the banking sector.

   The failures of Silicon Valley Bank and at New York-based Signature Bank 
have cast a harsh spotlight across the entire industry. Investors have zeroed 
in on smaller and midsized banks, the ones below in size of the 
"too-big-to-fail" banks and seen as riskier.

   Pressure on lenders could hinder lending to small and midsized businesses 
across the country. That in turn could lead to less hiring, a weaker economy 
and a higher potential for a recession that many economists already saw as 
likely.

   Friday's reports on the economy came in mixed, with orders for long-lasting 
manufactured goods slower last month than economists expected while business 
activity showed the fastest uptick in almost a year, according to a preliminary 
report from S&P Global.

   In other trading, U.S. benchmark crude oil advanced 80 cents to $70.06 per 
barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It lost 70 
cents to $69.26 on Friday.

   Brent crude, the pricing basis for international trading, gained 82 cents to 
$75.41 per barrel in London.

   The U.S. dollar rose to 131.18 Japanese yen from 130.57 yen. The euro 
weakened to $1.0761 from $1.0774.