Asia Stocks: New Offerings

India's rupee traded higher for the second day in a row helping to lift stocks on the Bombay exchange. Market participants saw investor sentiment rise as speculation mounts that investors from abroad will continue to bargain hunt in beaten-up emerging markets like India. The Sensex Index rose by 155.62 points, or 0.9%, to 17,806.19.

India's Railway Minister Lalu Prasda announced plans to reduce transportation charges -- cutting freight rates for gasoline and diesel by 5% and cutting fly ash by 14%. "The cut in freight rates for fuel and fly ash have boosted stocks of refiners and cement makers," said Sandeep Neema, asset manager at J.M. Financial Mutual Fund in Mumbai.

Investors looking for more ways to play the emerging market boom can now look at two new India exchange-traded funds. The WisdomTree India Earnings Fund (EPI Quote) is a pure play that will track 150 Indian companies based on earnings performance. Shares of EPI began trading Monday and finished Tuesday up 1.1% at $26.16. On March 1 the PowerShares India Portfolio (PIN Quote) is set to launch, and will track 50 Indian stocks, with the goal of representing the overall Indian stock market.

Leading the advance among Indian ADRs were WNS Holdings (WNS Quote), up 5.1% to $14.81, Sterlite Industries India (SLT Quote), up 4.3% to $21.24, and Morgan Stanley India Investment Fund (IIF Quote), up 2.2% at $43.92.

Indian global communications firm Tata Communications (TCL Quote) signed an agreement with China Enterprise Netcom to expand its networks services through VPN connections. The agreement will help Tata customers' access global networks in 347 Chinese cities, according to indiainfo.com. Shares of TCL traded up 6.2% to $25.88 on light volume.

Among the few Indian ADRs that bucked the positive trend Tuesday was HDFC Bank (HDB Quote). Shares of HDFC fell 1% to $113.18 on above-average trading volume. Market players contributed to the decline due arbitrage pressure from its proposed merger with the Bank of Punjab. HDFC did receive some positive news from credit ratings agency Fitch Tuesday after the company affirmed its positive rating on the bank.

Be sure to check out the Far East Portfolio at Stockpickr.com every night to find out which stocks in India and China are making big moves and announcing major news.

China Recap

China's stock market has declined nearly 20% this year, due in part to the plans of listed companies to offer new shares to the public. The fear in the Far East is that these new stock offerings will flood the Chinese markets with excess liquidity and eventually lead to lower equity prices. China's securities regulator reigned in the overzealous firms Tuesday warning listed companies to stop flooding the market with shares. "Refinancing by listed companies is an important function of the capital market, but it should never become raking in money maliciously," said a spokesman for the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission.

The Shanghai Composite Index ended a volatile session to close up 45.65 points, or 1.1%, to 4,238.18. Stocks in Hong Kong put in a strong performance Tuesday as investors bid up shares in front of the government's annual budget set for Wednesday. The Hang Seng Index traded up 445.61 points, or 1.9%, to 23,714.75.

M&A chatter was a hot topic in the Chinese airline sector. China Eastern Airlines (CEA Quote) rejected a potential merger with Air China. Executives at China Eastern said the proposed merger wouldn't be in the best interest of shareholders, and they'll instead look for other strategic alternatives. Shares of CEA fell 5% to $63.43 and China Southern Airlines (ZNH Quote), the largest airline in terms of fleet size, fell 1% to $48.58.

Chinese online game operators continue to shine and report strong earnings numbers. Shanghai-based online gaming firm Shanda Interactive Entertainment (SNDA Quote) reported a 52% rise in fourth-quarter revenue due to strong demand for new games. Shares of Shanda exploded higher by 13% to $34.89 as short-sellers scrambled to cover positions. Shanda has about 24% of its float sold short.