SINGAPORE (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose to the highest in a week, led by bank and technology shares after Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. and NEC Corp. forecast profit increases. Sumitomo Mitsui, Japan's No. 3 lender by assets, led gains among banks after saying loans became more profitable in the second half. Samsung Electronics Co. rose for the first time in six days after NEC predicted earnings will triple and Intel Corp. said demand for personal computers is “healthy.” “Bank shares have been performing poorly for a long time, and optimism is building they'll do better,” said Kazuya Nakamura, who helps oversee $10 billion of assets at Norinchukin Zenkyoren Asset Management Co. in Tokyo. “Electronics makers' profits are recovering and their earnings prospects for this year are brighter than expected.”

The Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index added 0.8 percent to 149.45 at 5:08 p.m. in Tokyo, set for the highest close since May 14. BHP Billiton Ltd. advanced after copper prices in New York surged the most in a month and oil rose to a three-week high.

Benchmarks fell in Australia, Hong Kong, India and Sri Lanka, while New Zealand's was little changed. Elsewhere in the region they rose, with the Nikkei 225 Stock Average adding 0.7 percent to 17,680.05 and indexes in China, the Philippines, Singapore and South Korea reaching new highs. ------------------- Focus on banks

Shares of Sumitomo Mitsui jumped 5.7 percent to 1.12 million yen, the biggest advance since November 2005. The lender forecast profit will rise 22 percent to 540 billion yen ($4.45 billion) in the financial year ending March 2008.

The difference in interest charged on loans and deposits widened 0.07 percent to 1.66 percent in the six months through March from the same period a year earlier, the bank reported Monday. Net interest income accounted for over half the total gross operating income of Japan's four biggest banks in 2006, according to data from HSBC Securities Japan Ltd.

Japan's Topix Banks Index rose 3.6 percent, the biggest gain among 33 industry groups included in the Topix. The measure is the third-biggest loser this year.

“Speculation over bigger profit growth in the industry pushed bank shares higher,” said Katsunori Hirai, who helps oversee $20 billion in assets at Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. in Tokyo.

Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Japan's No. 2 bank by assets, climbed 4.4 percent to 803,000 yen. After the close of trading, the company said it may earn 750 billion yen this year, 21 percent higher than its profit of 620.9 billion yen for the 12 months ended March 31.

Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., the biggest, rose 3 percent to 1.36 million yen. The lender is scheduled to report earnings today. ------------------- Technology rally

Samsung, Asia's largest maker of chips, flat screens and mobile phones, gained 2.4 percent to 565,000 won, ending a five-day, 3.8 percent loss.

NEC, Japan's largest personal computer maker, jumped 7.3 percent to 632 yen, the most since July 2003. The company said profit in the current financial year is expected to rise to 30 billion yen, from 9.1 billion yen, as mobile-phone earnings improve and its semiconductor unit cuts spending.

Intel, the world's largest semiconductor maker, continues to see “healthy” demand in the personal computer market, senior vice president Patrick Gelsinger said Monday at an investor conference in Boston.

Sony Corp., the world's second-largest maker of consumer electronics, rose 3 percent to 7,150 yen. The company on May 17 forecast record profit of 320 billion yen this year.

Lenovo Group Ltd., the world's third-biggest maker of personal computers, added 2.2 percent to HK$3.20. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., the world's largest contract-electronics manufacturer, climbed 1.2 percent to NT$244.50. -------------------- Metals, oil

BHP added 0.6 percent to A$31.37. Rio Tinto Group, the second-biggest mining company by market value, gained 0.3 percent to A$92.60. Nippon Mining Holdings Inc., Japan's biggest copper producer, advanced 1.5 percent to 1,038 yen.

Copper futures for July delivery gained 7.7 cents, or 2.3 percent, to $3.4005 a pound Monday on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude oil Monday rose 2.1 percent to settle at $66.27 a barrel in New York, the highest close for a front-month contract since April 27, and was recently at $66 in after-hours trading.

CNOOC Ltd., China's biggest offshore oil producer, added 3 percent to HK$7.53. Woodside Petroleum Ltd., the largest oil producer in Australia after BHP, rose 0.9 percent to A$43.70.

“Resources remain the single-most consistent source of good news,” said Jamie Spiteri, head dealer at Shaw Stockbroking Ltd. in Sydney. ------------------ Korean builders

In South Korea, a measure of construction stocks on the Kospi jumped 3.9 percent, leading gains among 19 industry groups. Government plans to build a new city of about 100,000 homes are “positive” for the industry, Good Morning Shinhan Securities Co. analyst Lee Chang Keun said Tuesday in a research note.

Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., South Korea's No. 1 builder by market value, rose 5.8 percent to 28,200 won and Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co., the second largest, surged 4.3 percent to 63,200 won.

South Korean construction companies won 10.7 trillion won ($11.4 billion) of orders this year through May 17, a 28 percent increase from a year earlier, Korea Exchange Inc. said Monday in a statement. “The news coming out of the construction sector is pushing up the stocks these days, like the satellite city plans,” said Jeong Gi Won, who helps manage $2.1 billion at Daehan Investment Trust Management Co. in Seoul. “Builders have also been winning more contracts than last year.”

Elsewhere, DBS Group Holdings Ltd. climbed 2.9 percent to S$24.50 in Singapore. Shares of Southeast Asia's largest lender climbed after receiving final approval to incorporate in China, paving the way for it to offer local-currency services in the world's fastest-growing major economy.