Asian stocks fell, dragging the MSCI Asia Pacific Index to a two-week low after declines in oil and copper prices caused raw-material producers to slump. Japanese exporters gained as a weaker yen bolstered their earnings outlooks.
Rio Tinto, the world's third-largest mining company, sank 1.8 per cent in Sydney. Mitsui Chemicals slumped 4.7 per cent after Goldman Sachs cut its stock estimate. Honda, a carmaker that gets more than 80 per cent of its revenue outside Japan, gained 1.5 per cent as the yen depreciated against the US dollar. National Australia Bank climbed 1.7 per cent as a recovery in business banking and lower bad debts boosted earnings.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 1.1 per cent to 129.10 in Tokyo, set to close at its lowest level since Oct. 12. Two stocks declined for every four that advanced. The gauge dropped for the first week in two months last week after China, the world's fastest-growing major economy, unexpectedly raised interest rates and said it grew at the slowest pace in a year.
“In the short term, expect Asian markets to see a correction,” said Chris Leung, a Hong Kong-based portfolio manager at Taifook Asset Management. “I'm a bit cautious at the moment.”
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 1.2 per cent and China's Shanghai Composite Index sank 0.3 per cent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index dropped 0.5 per cent. Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 0.2 per cent.
Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 0.3 per cent. The index was little changed yesterday in New York, with most stocks declining as results from companies including Kimberly-Clark and US Steel Corp. overshadowed higher-than- estimated consumer confidence.