Stocks in Europe, Asia, U.S. Futures Gain; Barclays, Banks Rise

By Adria Cimino

March 16 (Bloomberg) -- Stocks in Europe and Asia and U.S. index futures climbed as the Group of 20 vowed to clean up toxic financial assets, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said a depression has been avoided, and Barclays Plc became the latest bank to say it had a strong start to the year.

Barclays climbed 11 percent after the British lender said its businesses continue to perform well. Deutsche Bank AG, Germany’s largest bank, and Prudential Plc, the U.K.’s second- biggest insurer, gained more than 3 percent. Mizuho Financial Group Inc., which has the most credit-related losses of any Asian bank, added 5.6 percent in Tokyo.

The MSCI World Index rose for a fifth straight day, climbing 1 percent at 8:13 a.m. in London. The gauge of 23 developed nations has surged 11 percent since March 9 as Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. said they made money during the first two months of 2009. The global measure has still lost 17 percent this year.

“We are hearing some decent news from Barclays,” James Bevan, London-based chief investment officer at CCLA Investment Management, which oversees $10 billion, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we get a rally.”

Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index gained 2 percent, while the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.6 percent as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. advanced.

Recession’s End

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index added 0.8 percent. Fed Chairman Bernanke said in an interview broadcast on CBS Corp.’s “60 Minutes” yesterday that, should the government succeed in stabilizing financial markets, the recession will probably end this year and the economy will expand in 2010.

“Equity markets are set to continue building on last week’s gains,” Matthew Buckland, a dealer at CMC Markets in London, wrote in a note. “Bernanke’s comments in the media over the weekend suggesting that the recession in the U.S. will probably end this year also stands to lift confidence.”

Finance chiefs from the G-20 this weekend vowed to work together to clean up the toxic assets that helped trigger the financial crisis and led banks to rack up more than $1.2 trillion in losses. G-20 officials outlined guidelines on how governments should rid banks of distressed securities.

Barclays surged 11 percent to 81.9 pence. The U.K.’s third- biggest lender also said it has held talks about the sale of its iShares unit. The board has made no decision on the sale of any assets, Barclays said.

Deutsche Bank added 5.6 percent to 27.21 euros. Prudential rose 3.2 percent to 269 pence.

Financial firms have led the Stoxx 600’s 53 percent slump since the beginning of last year. The measure has clawed back 8.9 percent since reaching a 12-year low on March 9.

Mitsubishi UFJ jumped 5.3 percent to 441 yen in Tokyo. Mizuho Financial, Japan’s second-largest bank, added 5.6 percent to 189 yen. The Bank of Japan is considering buying subordinated debt from banks to shore up capital, the Nikkei reported today.

To contact the reporter on this story: Adria Cimino in Paris at acimino1@bloomberg.net.