Sony Corp., which gets 23 percent of its sales in the U.S., sank 1.3 percent in Tokyo. Sharp Corp., a Japanese company seeking to expand its share in China’s mobile-phone market, declined 1.2 percent after that nation raised down payment ratios for some home purchases. BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company, lost 0.3 percent after oil and copper prices retreated in New York.
“Concern about China’s tightening may weigh on the Asian stock markets,” said Kazuhiro Takahashi, a general manager at Daiwa Securities Capital Markets Co. in Tokyo.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.2 percent to 128.83 as of 9:26 a.m. in Tokyo, with three stocks falling for each one that advanced. The gauge has risen 0.7 percent this week, its third-straight weekly gain, as China reported an 11.9 percent increase in first-quarter gross domestic product and U.S. earnings beat analyst estimates.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 0.7 percent and South Korea’s Kospi index lost 0.2 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index and New Zealand’s NZX 50 Index were little changed.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index declined 0.4 percent. The gauge fluctuated yesterday before closing 0.1 percent higher. The number of Americans filing claims for jobless benefits increased in the week ended April 10, while economists had projected a drop, a Labor Department report showed. Factory production rose 0.9 percent in March, the Federal Reserve said.
China’s cabinet yesterday increased down payment ratios for some home purchases, saying “more forceful” steps are needed to cool speculation. China’s economic growth in the first quarter was the fastest pace in almost three years.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index has climbed 13 percent from its low this year on Feb. 8 amid growing confidence in the global recovery. Companies in the MSCI gauge trade at an average 16.5 times estimated profit, compared with 15.5 times for the S&P 500.
