Asian stocks outside Japan fell, with the regional benchmark index retreating from a one-month high, as a survey showed China’s manufacturing may shrink for an eighth month and after the Federal Reserve cut its U.S. growth estimate and expanded its Operation Twist program.
Nikkei 225 8,824.07 +71.76 +0.82%
S&P/ASX 200 4,087.6 -44.84 -1.09%
Shanghai Composite 2,264.7 -28.18 -1.23%
Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s No. 1 mobile-phone maker by sales that counts China and the U.S. as its biggest markets, dropped 2 percent in Seoul.
BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s largest mining company and Australia’s No. 1 oil producer, declined 1.2 percent in Sydney as crude and copper futures fell.
Renesas Electronics Corp. gained 3.1 percent in Tokyo on a report that KKR & Co. and Silver Lake are in talks to invest in the chipmaker.