By Jonathan Burgos
Feb. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks fell, led by banks and insurers, as share-sale plans fanned concern the credit crunch is causing funding difficulties at companies across the region.
Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan’s largest securities firm, lost 14 percent after saying it may sell shares to replenish capital. Suncorp-Metway Ltd., Australia’s third-largest general insurer, plunged 21 percent after it sold stock at a discount. CapitaLand Ltd., Southeast Asia’s largest property developer, was suspended from trading in Singapore as it said it will raise $1.2 billion through the sale of equity after fourth-quarter profit slumped.
“The worst is not over yet,” said John Koh, regional investment director at MEAG Hong Kong Ltd. which manages $1.1 billion. “We’ll see worsening earnings going forward.”
About five stocks declined for every three that advanced on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which dropped 0.4 percent to 83.13 as of 5:13 p.m. in Tokyo. The gauge has fallen 7.2 percent in 2009, extending last year’s record 43 percent tumble, as the world’s biggest economies sank into recession.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 Stock Average lost 1.3 percent to 7,969.03, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index gained 0.8 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index advanced 1.1 percent. All markets gained except South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and Indonesia.
Haseko Corp., which builds condominiums and offices, sank 15 percent in Tokyo after saying it may not recover money owed by a bankrupt developer. BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company, climbed 3.4 percent as it said it may acquire mines and plants. Toyota Motor Corp., which widened its annual loss forecast, jumped 3.2 percent after Credit Suisse Group AG said its earnings will bottom out this quarter.
Government Action
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 1.4 percent. The gauge climbed 2.7 percent on Feb. 6 to the highest level since Jan. 28 after the U.S. jobless rate jumped to 7.6 percent last month, the highest since 1992, sparking speculation Congress will move quickly to pass an economic stimulus plan.
Governments around the world are stepping up efforts to ease the crisis that the International Monetary Fund predicts will cause global growth to almost grind to a halt this year. Asian nations from China to Singapore and India have pledged more than $685 billion on their own spending programs.
Advanced economies are already in “depression”, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said in Kuala Lumpur at the weekend.
A key procedural vote in the U.S. Senate on a $780 billion proposal is scheduled for later today, with a final vote tomorrow. The Senate measure must then be reconciled with an $819 billion plan the House approved last month.
Raising Capital
Stock declines in the past year have dragged the average valuation of companies on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index down by 15 percent to 13 times reported profit, as more signs emerged the global financial crisis was hurting corporate earnings.
Nomura tumbled 14 percent to 490 yen after saying it may sell stock valued at as much as 300 billion yen ($3.3 billion) from Feb. 19, the company said on Feb. 6 after markets shut. The brokerage posted a record loss of 343 billion yen in the three months to Dec. 31.
Suncorp plunged 21 percent to A$5.31. The company on Feb. 6 said it sold shares to institutions at a 33 percent discount to the stock’s last traded price. The stock also tumbled amid concern insurance claims will rise following wildfires in Australia that have so far killed at least 108 people and destroyed 750 homes.
Distressed Sellers
Haseko plunged 15 percent to 66 yen. The company is assessing its earnings forecast in light of the possible failure to recover funds from Japan General Estate Co. and its real estate unit. Japan General filed for bankruptcy protection last week.
Singapore’s CapitaLand, which reported an 88 percent slump in fourth-quarter profit, said it will raise S$1.84 billion ($1.2 billion) by selling equity to existing investors. The stock, suspended today, is down 24 percent this year.
In Sydney, BHP rose 3.4 percent to A$33.34. The company will seek assets from any distressed sellers and said some of Rio Tinto Group’s would fit well into its portfolio, Chief Executive Officer Marius Kloppers told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. yesterday.
Rio, which last week said it was in talks with Aluminum Corp. of China to raise cash by selling debt and stakes in some units, gained 5.7 percent to A$49.40. The company said today that director Jim Leng quit and will no longer become chairman as announced less than a month ago.
Machinery Orders
Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained as much as 2.2 percent today as a government report showed orders for Japanese machinery fell 1.7 percent in December from November. That’s less than the 8.6 percent tumble, economists in a Bloomberg survey had estimated.
Toyota, the world’s biggest automaker, jumped 3.2 percent to 3,190 yen, making it the most actively traded stock by value in Tokyo, followed by Nomura. Its earnings will bottom out in the fourth quarter and will gradually improve thereafter, Koji Endo, a Tokyo-based analyst for Credit Suisse, wrote in a report dated Feb. 6. He raised Toyota to “neutral” from “underperform.”
Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s third largest-automaker, fell 5.8 percent to 261 yen. The company said after markets closed it expects a net loss of 265 billion yen ($2.91 billion) for the year ending March 31, compared to its October estimate of 160 billion yen in net income.
Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd., Australia’s biggest soft-drink maker, slumped 11 percent to A$8.30 after Lion Nathan Ltd., the nation’s second-largest brewer, scrapped its A$7.3 billion (S4.9 billion) offer for the company.
To contact the reporter for this story: Jonathan Burgos in Singapore at jburgos4@bloomberg.net; Masaki Kondo in Tokyo at mkondo3@bloomberg.net.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment