By Chen Shiyin and Patrick Rial
July 18 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks fell, led by energy companies and steelmakers, on concern slowing global economic growth is weighing on raw-material producers' profits.
Cnooc Ltd., China's largest offshore oil producer, declined as oil prices headed for their worst week on record. Posco, Asia's third-biggest steelmaker, fell the most in two weeks in Seoul after the largest U.S. steel producer forecast profit that trailed analyst estimates. Mizuho Financial Group Inc., Japan's third-largest bank by market value, gained after JPMorgan Chase & Co. reported better-than-estimated profit.
``Sentiment swings are dominating the market,'' said Mitsushige Akino, who manages about $560 million as chief investment officer at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. in Tokyo. ``It's going to be hard for the market to push much higher until a clearer earnings picture emerges for the financials.''
The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index lost 0.7 percent to 129.96 at 12:58 p.m. Tokyo time, heading for its fifth weekly drop in six. The gauge has lost 18 percent this year as mounting credit market losses and soaring raw-material prices raised concern that global economic growth will slow.
Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 0.1 percent to 12,874.79. About half the benchmark indexes in Asia retreated, with Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Composite Index dropping 1.6 percent, the region's biggest loss.
U.S. stocks climbed yesterday, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to its best two-day gain in almost six years. JPMorgan, the largest U.S. bank by market value, led financial shares to their biggest-ever two-day surge.
To contact the reporter for this story: Chen Shiyin in Singapore at schen37@bloomberg.net; Patrick Rial in Tokyo at prial@bloomberg.net.
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