ADR Report: Shares End Higher, Boosted by Energy Stocks

    By Nathalie Tadena 
 

International companies trading in New York closed higher Tuesday, as a surge in oil prices helped boost energy shares.

The Bank of New York index of American depositary receipts gained 1% to 121.58.

Oil prices rallied on revived tensions over the Iranian nuclear program and renewed speculation about more central bank easing, lifting shares of oil companies. Share of Total rose 2.3% to $46.54, Statoil shares were up 1.6% to $24.64, Petrobras gained 3.2% to $19.67 and Sinopec climbed 3% to $29.34.

The European index rose a fraction to 112.47.

The approval of two of Syngenta's corn varieties by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is positive for the company's U.S. corn franchise, said a Vontobel analyst. "The approvals further strengthen the competitive offer in corn and should prove supportive for both top-line growth and margins in the seeds business," analyst Patrick Rafaisz said. Shares of Syngenta, a Swiss agricultural chemical and seed company, rose 2.5% to $68.82.

Among decliners, Barclays PLC's shares slipped 2.1% to $10.54. Barclays's chief operating officer Jerry del Missier resigned, the second senior executive to quit the U.K. bank Tuesday in the wake of its settlement with regulators over an interest-rate-fixing scandal.

The Asian index climbed 1.5% to 121.09.

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services upgraded its ratings on Indonesia telecom operator Indosat by one notch, placing it on the brink of investment grade. The ratings firm said it expects Indosat to maintain its improved financial performance over the next two years at least. Shares were up 1.4% to $23.01.

Barclays said India retail loans, at about 18% of total bank loans, are showing early signs of a pickup due to an improvement on demand for housing loans. "An increasing contribution from retail loans for FY13 is likely given banks' stated focus on retail lending and housing loans in particular," the firm said. Icici Bank shares rose 2.6% to $33.25.

The Latin American index traded up 1.5% to 324.44 and the emerging markets index advanced 1.7% to 276.48.

Mining stocks posted broad gains as metal prices pushed higher across the board.

Among South African gold-mining companies, AngloGold Ashanti shares finished up 2.2% to $34.29, Harmony Gold Mining Co. shares gained 2% to $9.40 and DRDGold climbed 2.6% to $6.67.

Peru's Compania de Minas Buenaventura shares jumped 1.5% to $38.82 while Brazil's Vale shares improved 2.4% to $20.59.

-Write to Nathalie Tadena at [e-mail]