Asian Commodity Stocks Rise, Led by Nippon Steel; ANZ Drops
Asian commodity stocks rose after Japanese steelmakers agreed to a lower-than-estimated increase in iron-ore prices and crude oil held above $95 a barrel.Nippon Steel, Japan’s biggest steelmaker, climbed the most in three weeks after steelmakers agreed to a 65 percent increase in iron-ore prices, lower than some analysts estimated. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. led a decline among banks after its chief executive said a “bloodbath” in debt markets will wipe out profit growth.
“Some had anticipated the price for iron ore would double,” said Mitsushige Akino, who oversees about $560 million in assets as chief investment officer at Ichiyoshi Investment Management Co. “Demand in emerging markets will likely help steelmakers increase sales and fend off the cost increase.”
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed at 144.69 as of 1:04 p.m. in Tokyo. Commodity and energy-related stocks were the two biggest percentage gainers among the gauge’s 10 industry groups.
The Nikkei 225 Stock Average added 0.3 percent to 13,665.52. Sony Corp. climbed after Kyodo news said rival Toshiba Corp. may exit high-definition DVD production. Tokyo Electron Ltd. led computer chip-related stocks higher after Credit Suisse Group raised its rating on the industry.
Nippon Steel gained 4.3 percent to 581 yen, set to close at its highest since Jan. 24. JFE Holdings Inc., Japan’s second- biggest steelmaker, added 6.5 percent to 4,420 yen. Posco, South Korea’s largest steelmaker, climbed 1 percent to 521,000 won.
Steelmakers
Steelmakers in Japan agreed to a 65 percent increase in the annual price of iron ore, the raw material used to make steel, a Japanese company official said. Prices may rise as much as 70 percent because of a global supply deficit, Credit Suisse said last month.
Woodside Petroleum gained 2.3 percent to A$51. Santos Ltd., Australia’s No. 3 oil and gas producer, advanced 4.3 percent to A$14.23. Cnooc Ltd., China’s largest offshore oil explorer, added 1.6 percent to HK$12.52.
Crude oil in New York rose as much as 1.3 percent to $96.67 on Feb. 15. Prices were recently at $95.60 a barrel.
Tokyo Electron, the world’s second-largest maker of chip- production equipment, gained 1.5 percent to 6,870 yen. Advantest Corp., the biggest maker of memory-chip testers, climbed 8.4 percent to 2,520 yen.
Credit Suisse raised its recommendation on Japan’s chip- equipment makers to “overweight” from “market weight” because it expects orders to pick up this year.
Sony, Toshiba
Sony, which helped develop the Blu-ray high-definition DVD standard, gained 2.1 percent to 4,950 yen. Toshiba is reviewing whether to completely end a rival HD DVD production standard, depending on factors such as demand from the U.S., Kyodo news reported on Feb. 16, citing unidentified industry officials.
Toshiba climbed 5.6 percent to 828 yen, the highest since Dec. 28 on speculation the company will abandon unprofitable business.
Australia & New Zealand Banking, Australia’s third-largest bank, dropped 5.7 percent to A$22.54, the lowest since Sept. 6, 2005. Chief Executive Officer Michael Smith said today the upheaval in global debt markets “is a financial services bloodbath” and that “credit costs are going up, well above underlying earnings growth.”
Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country’s biggest mortgage lender, lost 4.4 percent to A$44.33, the biggest drag on the MSCI gauge. National Australia Bank Ltd., the nation’s largest by assets, lost 2.1 percent to A$30.
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