Bloomberg Jan 21---Japanese stocks fell, with the Topix index on course for its biggest weekly slide since October, as trading houses dropped amid declines in oil and metal prices on concern China will raise interest rates and cool demand.
Mitsubishi Corp., Japan’s largest commodities trader, lost 3.7 percent. Inpex Corp., the country’s No. 1 oil and gas explorer, fell 3.1 percent. Fanuc Corp., which receives more than 50 percent of its sales from Asia, fell 2.7 percent. NEC Corp., Japan’s largest maker of personal computers, advanced 2.5 percent after the Nikkei newspaper reported that Lenovo Group Ltd. may acquire a majority stake in the company’s personal computer manufacturing unit.
“Concerns remain about China’s tightening,” said Yoshinori Nagano, a senior strategist in Tokyo at Daiwa Asset Management Co., which oversees about $104 billion. “People are worried that with continued tightening from emerging economies, especially China, that demand for commodities will decline.”
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average slipped 0.9 percent to 10,346.78 as of the midday trading break in Tokyo, reversing an earlier gain of 0.2 percent. The broader Topix index slid 1.1 percent to 917.47 after earlier rising 0.2 percent. At least twice as many stocks fell as rose on both gauges. Both measures are on course for their biggest weekly slide since the week ended Oct. 29.
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