Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s biggest carmaker by market value, rose 2.1 percent. James Hardie Industries SE (JHX), a building- materials supplier that gets almost 70 percent of sales from the U.S., rose 1.3 percent after a report showed the U.S. jobless rate fell to the lowest level since March 2009. BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP) rose 1.5 percent to lead a gain among Australian mining companies after the nation’s ruling Labor Party ended a ban on uranium exports to India.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.4 percent to 118.08 as of 10:29 a.m. in Tokyo with all 10 industry groups on the index gaining. The measure jumped 8 percent last week, the biggest weekly advance since Aug. 24, 2007.

“It’s pleasing that Italy backed relatively swiftly the new government to put in an austerity measure and demonstrate moving forward in terms of meeting requirements put in place by the EU,” said Tim Schroeders, who helps manage $1 billion in equities at Pengana Capital Ltd. in Melbourne. “Whether that in fact will see a quite reaction from the public, you will have to wait and see.”

Italian Measures

Stocks gained after Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti announced 30 billion euros ($40 billion) of austerity and growth measures yesterday. The premier will present the package, which includes a tax on luxury goods, resurrects a property levy on first homes, and forces many workers to delay retirement, to both houses of parliament today.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel meets French President Nicolas Sarkozy today to advance a plan for stricter enforcement of the region’s deficit rules that will be presented to European leaders at a summit on Dec. 8.

“Expectations are mounting for this week’s European Union summit, making the market sensitive to any negative factors,” said Kenichi Hirano, general manager and strategist at Tachibana Securities Co. in Tokyo. “They are likely to reach an agreement, but domestic issues facing Germany and France may hamper the process.”

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 0.5 percent, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.6 percent. South Korea’s Kospi Index rose 0.1 percent.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.6 percent today. The S&P 500 index fell less than 0.1 percent on Dec. 2, wiping out an early rally. The U.S. jobless rate slid to 8.6 percent in November, the lowest level since March 2009, and employment climbed by 120,000 workers, Labor Department figures showed on Dec. 2.

To contact the reporter on this story: Yoshiaki Nohara in Tokyo at ynohara1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Gentle at ngentle2@bloomberg.net.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-05/asian-stocks-extend-biggest-weekly-gain-in-four-years-on-europe-optimism.html

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