YEREVAN, December 27. /ARKA/. Asian stocks climbed with metals, while the yen weakened to a five-year low against the euro, on speculation the Bank of Japan will sustain monetary easing, while an improving U.S. jobs market allows the Federal Reserve to taper stimulus. China’s money market rates fell.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was up 0.3 percent at 1:40 p.m. in Tokyo, set for a 1.1 percent weekly gain. Copper surged 1.2 percent and nickel rose 0.4 percent. The yen slipped 0.3 percent to the weakest since October 2008 versus the euro. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index were little changed. China’s seven-day repurchase rate dropped 24 basis points to 5.09 percent, while the yuan reached a 20-year high. The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.3735.

U.S. initial jobless claims declined more than forecast last week to 338,000, underscoring confidence as the Fed begins slowing its bond purchases amid improving economic data. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe drew criticism from China and South Korea by visiting a war shrine yesterday.

“The U.S. data has been coming in quite strong since the Fed decided to start tapering, while the market has expectations that in Japan stimulus could be increased,” said Etsuko Yamashita, the chief economist in New York at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. “A lot of people think dollar-yen will keep pushing higher.”

The Topix index (SHCOMP) climbed 0.3 percent, after closing at its highest level since August 2008 yesterday, as a weaker yen bolstered the outlook for exporter earnings. The currency fell as low as 144.06 per euro and 105.03 a dollar, passing 105 for the first time since October 2008. Japan’s statistics bureau said core consumer prices rose 1.2 percent in November, beating the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of 1.1 percent. –0—