Stock market fixing:
Nikkei 225 -66.25 -0.5% 12
956.80
Topix -7.55 -0.6% 1 238.93
FTSE -85.90 -1.55%
5,448.60
DAX -163.68 -2.49% 6,422.19
CAC +17.94 +0.41% 4,420.91
Dow -109.51 -0.94%
11,532.96
NASDAQ -1.99 -0.08% 2,428.62
S&P -3.76 -0.29%
1,285.83
10yr Note +0.2900 +0.074%
3.947%
NYMEX Crude Oil +2.99 +2.65%
116.00
Gold +16.90 +2.07% 831.50
Japan stocks fell for a third day after Urban Corp. filed the nation's biggest
bankruptcy claim in six years, prompting concern more companies will fail as
the economy slows.
K.K. DaVinci Holdings, the nation's
largest real estate asset manager, fell by its trading limit after Urban became
the fifth listed Japanese developer to file for court protection in the past
month. Kansai Urban Banking Corp. plunged to a five-year low after saying it
may not be able to recover a loan from Urban. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. led
shipping lines higher after the benchmark for commodity cargo fees broke a
23-day losing streak.
Urban shares plunged 48% after it
filed for protection from $2.35 billion in debt. It was the largest bankruptcy
among listed companies since 2002 and No. 21 in Japan's history, according to Tokyo
Shoko Research Ltd., a credit analysis group. Japan's corporate bankruptcies hit
a five- year high in July, spearheaded by real estate companies as banks cut
off funding.
Kansai Urban plunged 8.3%, the
lowest since July 2003. The bank said it may not be able to recover a 6 billion
yen ($55 million) loan to Urban Corp. Bank of Yokohama Ltd., which also funds
the failed developer, slumped 7.1%.
Kawasaki Kisen added 5%. Mitsui
O.S.K. Lines Ltd. jumped 4.2%.
Mitsui & Co., which generates
more than half its profit from commodities trading, climbed 2.6%. Inpex
Holdings Inc. rose 2.7%.
European stocks advanced for the first time in three days as the cheapest mining shares in
six months lured investors and better-than-estimated earnings from Wal-Mart
Stores Inc. boosted retailers.
BHP Billiton Ltd., the world's
largest mining company, jumped 4.6% as copper and gold gained for a second day.
Tesco Plc and Metro AG rallied after Wal-Mart, the biggest retailer, said
profit will rise more than it previously forecast. Hochtief AG gained as Germany's
largest builder increased its earnings forecast.
In Europe,
data showed the region's economy contracted in the second quarter for the first
time since the launch of the euro almost a decade ago as faltering sales
undermined investment by companies and soaring costs eroded consumer spending
power. Gross domestic product fell 0.2% from the first quarter, when it rose
0.7%, the European Union statistics office in Luxembourg said. Separate figures
showed inflation held at 4 percent in July, less than initially estimated.
BHP Billiton climbed 4.6%. Rio Tinto
Group added 3.1%.
L'Oreal SA dropped 4.6%. The world's
biggest cosmetics maker was downgraded to ``underweight'' from ``equal-weight''
by Morgan Stanley analysts, who said the stock price is ``unjustified'' because
of the ``downside risk'' to earnings estimates.
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG slipped
1.2%. The world's largest maker of luxury cars was lowered to ``sell'' from
``hold'' at Citigroup Inc., which said slower sales and rising raw-materials
costs may reduce profits.
Stocks turned lower
Thursday as a sharp
increase in consumer inflation outweighed a big earnings report by the retail
giant Wal-Mart.
Stocks have slumped for the past two sessions,
weighed by credit fears and concerns about the weakening economy.
Before the bell reports showed consumer prices
surged more than expect during the month of July. The index, a key measure of
inflation, rose 0.8% in July, more than twice what economists were
anticipating, versus a 1.1% gain the previous month. The so-called core CPI,
which excludes the volatile food and energy prices, increased 0.3% in July on a
monthly basis. Analysts had expected an increase of 0.2%. The annual rate
climbed to 5.6%, hitting its highest level since 1991.
In other economic news, jobless claims slipped
to 450,000 in
the most recent week.
Corporate news: Wal-Mart, the world's largest
retailer, reported a 17% jump in second-quarter profit which beat earnings
predictions. The company reported a profit of $3.4 billion, or 87 cents a
share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected profit of 84 cents a share.
Revenue rose 10% to $101.6 billion, a shade below Wall Street's estimates. The
company also boosted its full-year earnings forecast to between $3.43 and $3.50
a share.
In other company news, Barnes & Noble Inc.
would probably not attempt to acquire rival Borders Group Inc., according to a
Wall Street Journal report.