Tokyo :  Asian stocks fell, dragging the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lower for the first time in three days, on concern a stronger yen and Chinese measures to curb property prices will damp earnings growth in the region.

Sony Corp., an electronics maker that gets almost half of its revenue from the US and Europe, lost 2.1 per cent in Tokyo as the yen rose against the euro and the dollar on speculation US President Barack Obama will call for new financial regulations.

Bank of Communications, China's fourth-largest publicly traded lender, slumped 4.9 per cent in Shanghai after saying it made fewer mortgages the past two months. Rio Tinto Group, the world's third-biggest mining company, lost 2.1 per cent in Sydney after commodity prices fell.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index declined 0.7 per cent to 126.30 as of 7.31pm in Tokyo after a two-day, 1.3 per cent advance. The gauge rose 0.9 per cent yesterday, the most since March 26, as better-than-estimated corporate results boosted confidence in the global economic recovery.

Momentum

"While economic recovery is gaining momentum and earnings have been surprising on the upside, regulatory headwinds are increasing. That will make it harder for banks to operate," said Daphne Roth, Singapore-based head of Asian equity research at ABN Amro Private Banking, which oversees about $21 billion (Dh77 billion) in the region. "The policy tightening in China will continue amid growing concerns about asset bubbles."

Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average sank 1.3 per cent, eroding Wednesday's 1.7 per cent advance. Property and bank shares helped drag down the Shanghai Composite Index by 1.1 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index by 0.3 per cent.

Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 0.5 per cent, following a 0.1 per cent decline by the benchmark stock gauge on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.1 per cent, amid better-than-estimated earnings from Apple, Morgan Stanley and Boeing Co.

All of the 10 industry groups on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index fell. Japanese exporters slumped as the yen strengthened to as much as 124.06 against the euro from 125.24 at the 3pm close of stock trading in Tokyo on Wednesday. Against the dollar, the yen appreciated to as high as 92.74 from 93.23.

Sony lost 2.1 per cent to 3,250 yen. Nintendo Co., which receives about 34 per cent of revenue from Europe, sank 1.8 per cent to 30,750 yen. Fanuc Ltd., a maker of industrial robots that gets 18 per cent of its sales from North America, slumped 2.7 per cent to 10,190 yen.

The yen advanced against its major counterparts as Obama's spokesman said the US president would call for new financial regulations at a speech later yesterday, boosting demand for Japan's currency as a refuge from turmoil in the banking sector.

Market reaction

"The markets are wary over what Obama may say about new financial-industry regulations," said Yuji Saito, director of the foreign-exchange department at Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank in Tokyo. "The mood is leaning toward risk aversion. The bias is for the yen to be bought."

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index has surged 11 per cent from its low this year on February 8 amid better-than-estimated earnings and signs of growth in the region and the US. China's economy grew 11.9 per cent in the first quarter, the fastest pace in almost three years. Shares on the measure trade at an average of 1.64 times book value, compared with about 1.5 times at the February low, according to Bloomberg data.

Bank of Communications, part-owned by HSBC Holdings Plc, slid 4.9 per cent to 7.33 yuan. Dicky Yip, an executive vice-president at BoCom, as the bank is also known, said the lender had experienced "an obvious drop in volume" in the last two months. He declined to give loan-volume figures.