ASIA STOCKS fell (stock market)

Japanese stocks fell Thursday, despite early rise as the dollar turned down versus the yen afternoon. The Nikkei Stock Average fell 0.79.

Auto stocks were lower after recent gains, with Toyota Motor Corp. losing 0.3%, Nissan Motor Co. down 1.2%, and Mazda Motor Corp. off 0.4%. 

Sony Corp. climbed 2.1%, Panasonic Corp. added 1.4%, and Nintendo Co. gained 1.5%. The Wall Street Journal reported on speculation Nintendo is already working on a next-generation videogame console. 

Nidec Corp. traded 1.1% higher after raising its fiscal-year net-profit forecast, while Fujitsu Ltd. saw its value gain 1.7% on a separate Wall Street Journal report that the company was considering buying an IBM Corp. server unit. 

Hong Kong stocks extended losses after a preliminary reading of January's China manufacturing activity from HSBC fell to 49.6, marking the first contraction in six months. The Hang Seng Index retreated 1.51% and the Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.47%.

Chinese banks suffered, as Agricultural Bank of China Ltd. lost 1.4%, Bank of Communications Co. dropped 1.3%, Bank of China Ltd. gave up 1.2%. 

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Casino stocks also declined broadly after J.P. Morgan warned Macau casino stocks are already fairly valued and downgraded MGM China Holdings Ltd. to neutral. MGM China tumbled 3.9%, Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. moved lower by 3.2%, and Wynn Macau Ltd. fell 2.4%.

Australia stocks dipped lower early Thursday, with the S&P/ASX 200 falling 1.07%. 

Among the major decliners, Insurance Australia Group Ltd. lost 2.3% after cutting its outlook for the fiscal year's gross written premium growth, even as it raised its insurance margin guidance. Rival Suncorp Group Ltd. tracked the loss, dropping 2.2%. 

Overall, financials traded mostly lower as the previous day's stronger-than-expected inflation data lowered the odds of another rate cut. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group lost 0.3%, Westpac Banking Corp. declined by 0.5%, and Commonwealth Bank of Australia edged 0.2% lower. 

On the other hand, Macquarie Group Ltd. rose 1.2% as Citi raised its rating on the shares to buy from neutral. 

Miners were mixed as iron-ore halted its decline overnight, with Rio Tinto Ltd. up 0.3% and Fortescue Metals Group Ltd. adding 0.8%, but BHP Billiton Ltd. retreating 0.8%. 

Gold miners were broadly lower, with Evolution Mining Ltd. off 1.6%, and Kingsgate Consolidated Ltd. down 1.7%, Newcrest Mining Ltd. rallied 3.4% after reporting rising production and further cost cutting.

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