Asian stocks fell, led by mining companies, after Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd. reported first- half profit that missed analysts' forecasts. BHP Billiton, the world's biggest miner, slipped from a record. ``Resources stocks like BHP have run up ahead of results and are now trading at premiums to future earnings,'' said Angus Gluskie, who manages the equivalent of $440 million at White Funds Management in Sydney. ``Some investors are using the earnings reports as an opportunity to lighten their holdings.'' Gluskie said he sold his BHP Billiton shares ``some months ago.'' Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. and AOC Holdings Inc. slid after crude oil prices dropped for a third day. Posco declined after CLSA Ltd. cut its rating on South Korea's largest steelmaker. The Bloomberg World Asia-Pacific Index, which tracks the performance of 1,448 stocks in the region, fell for the first day in six. The index lost 0.7 percent to 118.68 as of 12:55 p.m. in Tokyo. Mining shares were the biggest losers by percentage, led by BHP Billiton and Sumitomo Metal Mining Co.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average dropped 0.5 percent to 10,907, while the Topix index lost 0.3 percent to 1110.80. Japan's Topix Oil & Coal Index had the biggest percentage drop among the 33 industries that make up the Topix.
Around the Region
China's benchmarks gained after the China Securities Journal said the country's legislature is considering scrapping approval requirements for the pricing of shares and listing of corporate bonds to reduce red tape. The Philippine Stock Exchange Composite Index slumped 2.3 percent, making it the region's worst performer. All other stock indexes fell, except for those in Australia and South Korea, which were little changed. Taiwan's financial markets and government offices were closed today as a typhoon approached the island.
Aluminum Corp., the world's second-largest producer of alumina also known as Chalco, tumbled 3.4 percent to HK$3.60. Net income rose to 3.4 billion yuan ($411 million) from 1.58 billion yuan, the company said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange. A Bloomberg survey of five analysts had a median forecast of 3.5 billion yuan. BHP Billiton lost 0.8 percent to A$13.31. Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Japan's largest producer of gold, slid 1.9 percent to 714 yen.
Iraq on Track
Japan Petroleum, the nation's largest oil producer by market value, slipped 2.3 percent to 4,300 yen. AOC Holdings, a oil-refining company formed from the merger between Arabian Oil Co. and Fuji Oil Co., sank 3.1 percent to 949 yen. CNOOC Ltd., China's third-largest oil company, dropped 2.7 percent to HK$3.60. Woodside Petroleum Ltd., Australia's second- largest oil and gas company, lost 0.8 percent to A$18.59. ``Much of the good news for oil stocks is already factored into their share prices,'' said Masanao Yoshitake, who manages the equivalent of $1 billion Japanese equities at RCM Japan Ltd. in Tokyo. ``Many investors are expecting oil to come back down by year-end.'' Crude oil for October delivery fell 0.3 percent to $45.90 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 10:53 a.m. Sydney time. Oil prices fell after Iraq, the sixth-largest supplier to the U.S., increased shipments to tankers to normal rates for the first time in two weeks. Oil prices have climbed 43 percent this year as expanding economies boosted demand in the U.S. and China, which account for a third of global crude oil consumption, according to the International Energy Agency.
`Catch Up'
Posco dropped 2.8 percent to 158,000 won. Geoff Boyd, an analyst at CLSA, cut his recommendation on the stock to ``underperform'' from ``buy.'' An increase in raw material costs ``will catch up with the industry and Posco, and margins will erode,'' Boyd wrote in a report. ``This will exacerbate in the second half of 2005, and further again in 2006.'' CLSA also cut its 12-month stock-price forecast to 180,000 won ($156) from 210,000 won. The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks yuan- denominated A shares and foreign-currency B shares on the Shanghai stock exchange, rose 1.4 percent to 1344.45 and was the region's biggest gainer. Under draft amendments to the corporate and securities law, companies won't need approval from the securities regulator to issue shares at a premium to their par value, China Securities Journal reported, citing An Jian, deputy director of the Commission of Legislative Affairs of the National People's Congress. Jiangsu Expressway Co., a toll-road operator, rose 2.4 percent to 5.61 yuan. It added 1.9 percent yesterday. First- half earnings climbed 53 percent, the company said in a statement to the Shanghai stock exchange yesterday.
Philippines Falls
In the Philippines, Globe Telecom Inc. and parent Ayala Corp. dropped after President Gloria Arroyo said that the nation is in a fiscal crisis. Globe Telecom, the nation's No. 2 mobile-phone company, fell 2.3 percent to 845 pesos, set for its lowest close in almost a month. Parent Ayala Corp., which also owns the nation's largest property developer and its most valuable bank, dropped 1.8 percent to 5.4 pesos. Arroyo, who is proposing to raise 80 billion pesos ($1.4 billion) in new taxes, said yesterday that the nation must make ``sacrifices'' to fix its fiscal problem. Deficits since 1998 have inflated the government's debt to 3.4 trillion pesos and interest payments account for a third of the budget. ///www.bloomberg.com