RPT-World stocks hit 4-mth high on growth recovery hopes

(Repeats to broader coding)

HONG KONG, April 30 (Reuters) - World stocks struck a 4-month peak on Thursday, powered by gains in Asia, as investors took heart from signs of improvement in the U.S. economy suggesting regional exporters may need to start cranking up production.

The MSCI index of world shares .MIWD00000PUS was up 0.8 percent to hit its highest level since early January, boosted by a 3.7 percent surge in the MSCI Japan index .MIJP00000PJP.

The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific .MIAPJ0000PUS shares outside Japan jumped 3.8 percent to hit a 6-month peak. The move came as the forward 12-month EPS for the MSCI APXJ has reached 13.99, the highest since January 2008, according to data from Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. (Reporting by Eric Burroughs, Editing by Ian Geoghegan)