Most Asian stocks fell, dragging the regional benchmark
index lower for a second day, after U.S. consumer confidence unexpectedly
dropped this month.
Industrial Bank of Korea sank 4.2 percent as the South
Korea government sells 13.2 million of shares in the lender. BHP Billiton Ltd.
lost 1.2 percent in Sydney after copper prices fell for the first time in more
than a week. Rakuten Inc. surged 9.6 percent after the website operator said it
will increase its dividend following a plan to move its listing to the First
Section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.1 percent to 141.53
as of 9:39 a.m. in Hong Kong as five shares fell for every four that rose. The
gauge gained 9.5 percent this year through yesterday as central banks around
the world pledged to leave interest rates near record lows for a prolonged
period.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index yesterday traded at 13.9 times
estimated earnings, close to the multiple of 14 reached on Nov. 18, which was
the highest since May, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares
to a current multiple of 16.3 on the S&P 500 and 15.1 for the Stoxx Europe
600 Index.
(Source: bloomberg)