Asian stocks dropped after U.S. gauges retreated from record highs, while the yen extended gains following a report that showed Japan&rsquo s economy grew faster than economists estimated last quarter. Oil fell with nickel.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 0.6 percent by 9:22 a.m. in Tokyo, falling for the first time in three days. Japan&rsquo s Topix gauge slipped 1.5 percent, with shares of the biggest banks dropping after they forecast profit declines. Standard & Poor&rsquo s 500 Index futures fell 0.1 percent. The yen gained a second day, to 101.75 per dollar, while Australia&rsquo s dollar weakened 0.2 percent. Crude in New York lost 0.4 percent and nickel dropped a second day, losing 1 percent in London.

Japan&rsquo s economy grew 5.9 percent in the first quarter, the fastest annualized pace since 2011, with central bank chief Haruhiko Kuroda scheduled to speak in Tokyo today. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen will give an address in Washington, with data on U.S. inflation, factory output and the jobs market due. Investors resumed selling Internet and smaller stocks in New York trading as speculation that global policy makers will push ahead with stimulus efforts supported bonds.

&ldquo Markets will largely ignore the swathe of incoming data in favor of watching Fed Chair Yellen address the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,&rdquo Raiko Shareef, a markets strategist in Wellington at Bank of New Zealand Ltd., wrote in an e-mail to clients. &ldquo Mounting inflationary pressure will force the Fed to reassess its outlook for low rates and may prompt the market to price in a higher chance of rate hikes by the middle of 2015.&rdquo

Bank Stocks

The Topix retreated from a more than five-week high, while the Nikkei 225 Stock Average dropped 1.2 percent.

Mizuho Financial Group Inc. lost 1 percent after leading Japan&rsquo s three largest banks yesterday in predicting a drop in earnings for this year. Mizuho said net income may drop 20 percent from a record, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc., which fell 0.9 percent today, forecast a 3.5 percent decrease. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. projected a decline of 19 percent for the year and was down 3.8 percent today.

Sony Corp. unexpectedly forecast an annual loss yesterday, the sixth in seven years. Its shares slid 6.3 percent today.

The yen snapped a three-day decline versus the greenback in the last session, and rose a second day against the euro, gaining 0.3 percent. It was up 0.1 percent to 139.56 per euro today. Economists predicted Japan&rsquo s economy, the second-largest in Asia, expanded an annualized 4.2 percent last quarter, from 0.7 percent growth in the last three months of 2013.

Japan&rsquo s consumer confidence index for April is also scheduled, with Kuroda to address an event organized by Columbia Business School.

Commodity Markets

The Aussie dropped to 93.63 U.S. cents, while the New Zealand dollar fell 0.1 percent to 86.57 cents. The South pacific nation&rsquo s government releases its annual budget today.

West Texas Intermediate oil declined to $102.02 a barrel, after climbing 0.7 percent in the last session to a three-week high. A U.S. government report yesterday showed crude stockpiles at Cushing, Oklahoma -- the delivery point for WTI futures -- shrank by 592,000 barrels last week. Total inventories increased.

Nickel dropped to $19,739 a metric ton. The metal slid 4.6 percent on the London Metal Exchange yesterday, halting a six-day advance. Inventories of nickel tracked by the LME have risen 6.6 percent since December, even as a ban on unprocessed-ore exports by Indonesia stoked concerns over global supplies. Copper lost 0.3 percent to $6,902.25 a ton today.

 

Data as of 5:16pm ET

Wednesday&rsquo s Close:

Data as of 5:16pm ET

Tuesday&rsquo s Close: