* Oil rises to highest since October as commodities climb
* Australia dollar climbs near $0.81
* US Treasury yields tick lower after 10-yr jumps to 4 pct
* Asia ex-Japan resource stocks outperform (Corrects to show U.S. oil stocks drawdown was larger, not smaller, than expected)
By Kevin Plumberg
HONG KONG, June 11 (Reuters) - Asian stocks edged higher, powered by a sharp rise in commodity-related shares as oil prices extended gains on Thursday, keeping a rising trend in raw materials prices intact and boosting the Australian dollar.
Major European stock markets were expected to open as much
as 0.3 percent higher, according to financial bookmakers, ahead
of U.S. retail sales data. Wall Street futures were up 0.3
percent
U.S. Treasuries edged higher, after the benchmark 10-year yield
The U.S. dollar fell against the euro ahead of an $11 billion auction of 30-year bonds later, though some analysts expected foreign investors to continue to snap up Treasuries with higher yields, supporting the currency.
Meanwhile, tight inventories were squeezing crude prices, which rose to the highest since October last year.
"Oil prices continue their march to, and then beyond, $75 per barrel. Our forecast of an average $85 a per barrel for 2010 appears well on track, and we believe further upside price risk exists incoming quarters," Barclays Capital analysts said in a research note.
U.S. light crude for July delivery
Commodity prices have been broadly supported by signs of sustained domestic demand in China. Despite a slightly larger than expected annual decline in Chinese exports in May, urban fixed asset investment rose 32.9 percent last month compared with a year ago. [ID:nLB158202]
Japan's Nikkei share average <.N225> briefly poked above the psychologically key 10,000 to an eight-month high but closed down 0.1 percent on worries that rising interest rates in U.S. bond markets could thwart an economic recovery.
Still, shares of Nippon Steel Corp <5401.T> and other steel companies jumped and held on to gains after Morgan Stanley upgraded its ratings of the sector.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index <.AXJO> in resource-rich
Australia edged up 0.6 percent, buoyed by a 19 percent surge in
shares of Fortescue Metals
The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan <.MIAPJ0000PUS> rose 0.5 percent, but the materials sector index <.MIAPJMT00PUS> was up 2.1 percent.
The sub-index has risen 79 percent in the last three months, and the 90-day correlation with the Australian dollar has tightened to 0.98.
U.S. DOLLAR DOWN BUT NOT OUT?
The Australian dollar was up around 1.1 percent at $0.8102
The New Zealand dollar
The euro rose about 0.5 percent to $1.4040
Some analysts were positive about the dollar's outlook, because of sustained interest by foreign official investors as well as private investors looking for higher yields.
"The dollar gained following the steepening of the U.S. yield curve, which is certainly good news as it suggests the dollar can do well in an environment of rising yields, particularly should sovereign concerns abate," said Brian Kim, currency strategist with UBS, in a note to clients.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield slipped to 3.93 percent
Higher Treasury yields have a domino effect on the economy, since key rates for loans like mortgages are benchmarked to them. In the last three weeks, the 30-year U.S. mortgage rate has risen 88 basis points, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association, at a precarious time when the housing market is slowly stabilising.
Japanese government bonds also sold off, pushing up the 10-year yield to the highest since late October, at 1.56 percent