Japan's Stocks Retreat, Led by Steelmakers; Honda Climbs

By Masaki Kondo and Patrick Rial
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Aug. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Japan's stocks declined for the first time in three days, led by steelmakers.

Nippon Steel Corp. fell 1.5 percent, while smaller rival Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd. slumped 1.3 percent. Honda Motor Co., Japan's second-biggest carmaker, advanced 1.4 percent to a two-week high after oil prices retreated and the dollar strengthened against the yen, boosting its earnings outlook.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 92.99, or 0.7 percent, to 13,337.92 as of 9:10 a.m. in Tokyo. The broader Topix index slumped 0.95, or 0.1 percent, to 1,279.05.

Japan's wholesale inflation rate accelerated to a 27-year high in July as companies raised prices to offset oil and commodity costs, the Bank of Japan said in today before the stock market opened. Producer prices climbed 7.1 percent from a year earlier, compared with the median estimate of 5.7 percent by 31 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Nikkei futures expiring in September lost 0.4 percent to 13,340 in Osaka and dropped 0.2 percent to 13,345 in Singapore.

To contact the reporters for this story: Masaki Kondo in Tokyo at mkondo3@bloomberg.net; Patrick Rial in Tokyo at prial@bloomberg.net.