Asian stocks fell, as Seven & I Holdings Co. and Sekisui House Ltd. cut their profit forecasts.
The Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo jettisoned 249.60 points, or 2.4%, to 10,280.46.
Seven & I, the world’s largest convenience-store owner, and Sekisui House, Japan’s biggest home builder, dropped more than 2% in Tokyo. Elpida Memory Inc., Japan’s number-one memory-chip maker, tumbled 16% on plans to sell shares.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index let go of 350.30 points, or 1.8%, to 19,522.00. Air China Ltd., which is listed on the city’s stock exchange, slumped 4.6 percent after the Chinese government said it will raise fuel prices.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index sank even as a government report showed the country’s economy grew faster in the second quarter. Rio Tinto Group Ltd., the world’s third-largest mining company, fell 2.2% in Sydney after oil and copper prices slumped in New York. Westpac Banking Corp., Australia’s largest bank by market value, sank 2.3% as concern lenders will report more losses dragged U.S. financial shares lower yesterday.
Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., Japan’s largest publicly-traded bank, dropped 2.5%. Aeon Co., Japan’s second-largest retailer, slumped 4.5%. Uny Co., which runs department stores, slid 5.1%.
Sekisui House dropped 4.9%. The Osaka-based company cut its profit forecast for the year ending Jan. 31 by 68% to 6 billion yen ($65 million U.S.), citing the slump in the housing market.
Maruzen Co. fell 5.4%. The bookstore operator posted a 340-million-yen ($3.7 million U.S.) loss for the six months ended July 31, missing its forecast of a 10-million-yen profit because of weak sales, according to a preliminary earnings statement.
Singapore’s Olam International Ltd., a supplier of agricultural commodities that is partly owned by Temasek Holdings Pte, tumbled 7.3% after saying it sold $400 million U.S. of convertible bonds.
CHINA
Shanghai’s 300 Composite Index gained 47.23 points, or 1.7%, to 2,890.93 as Premier Wen Jiabao said the government will maintain a moderately loose monetary policy. Poly Real Estate Group Co., the country’s second-largest developer, climbed 3.7%.
Financial companies in China gained on speculation the government won’t tighten fiscal policy.
The country’s economy is at a "critical phase" of its recovery and the government will stick to its pro-active fiscal policy, Xinhua news agency reported Premier Wen as saying.
Industrial Bank Co., a Chinese lender backed by a unit of HSBC Holdings Plc., gained 7.9%.
Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., the nation’s biggest lender, gained 2%.
China Southern Airlines Co., the nation’s largest carrier, lost 2.9%
China will raise fuel prices by 300 yuan ($44) a ton, or as much as 6.3%, today to reflect gains in crude oil and offset higher raw material costs, the National Development and Reform Commission said on its website.
Elsewhere:
Singapore’s Straits Times Index fell 26.46 points, or 1%, to 2,569.93
South Korea’s Kospi index slid 9.90 points, or 0.6%, to 1,613.16
Taiwan’s Taiex gained 20.02 points, or 0.3%, to 7,039.77
New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index was off 10.03 points, or 0.3%, to 3,074.65
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 76.40 points, or 1.7%, to 4,514.60.
