SINGAPORE (Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks fell for the first time in four days after write-downs by UBS AG raised concern losses from U.S. sub-prime investments will widen.

Bank of China Ltd. and HSBC Holdings Plc. led banks lower after UBS said it will write down assets by $10 billion and sell stakes to raise capital. PetroChina Co. and Inpex Holdings Inc. led a drop among oil shares after crude fell below $88 a barrel.
National Australia Bank Ltd. and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. declined after a report showed U.S. payrolls rose more than expected, prompting investors to lower bets the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates by half a percentage point.
“Sub-prime concerns will continue to linger,” said Jacky Choi, who helps manage more than $6 billion at Value Partners Ltd. in Hong Kong. “The question is how big the aggregate impact will be. Right now, nobody knows.”
More than two stocks declined for each that gained on the MSCI Asia Pacific Index, which fell 0.6 percent to 163.59 as of 19:07 p.m. in Tokyo after a three-day, 1.4 percent rally. Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average retreated 0.2 percent to 15,924.39.
China's CSI 300 Index was Asia's biggest gainer after China Petroleum & Chemical Corp.'s parent signed a $2 billion agreement to develop an Iranian oil field and Aluminum Corp. of China said it received conditional approval for a takeover.
--------------Write-down at UBS
U.S. stocks fell on Dec. 7, sending the Standard & Poor's 500 Index to its first loss in three days, after the increase of 94,000 workers to payrolls prompted traders to lower bets that Fed policymakers will cut borrowing costs by half a percentage point at their Dec. 11 meeting.
UBS expects a loss in the fourth quarter and possibly for 2007, the Zurich-based company said yesterday. Securities firms and banks had announced about $66 billion of losses and markdowns linked to the collapse of sub-prime-mortgage market this year.
Bank of China, the nation's second-largest lender, slid 1.2 percent to HK$4.07 in Hong Kong, reversing an earlier gain of 0.7 percent. HSBC, Europe's largest bank by market value, lost 2.1 percent to HK$133.80 in Hong Kong, its biggest drop in more than two weeks. United Overseas Bank Ltd., Singapore's No. 2 bank by assets, slipped 0.5 percent to S$20.
National Australia, the nation's biggest, lost 0.9 percent to A$38.88. Commonwealth Bank of Australia, the country's largest home lender, slid 0.4 percent to A$60.47. Futures contracts pointed to a 26 percent chance of a half-percentage point cut by the Fed, compared with a 36 percent likelihood a day earlier.
---------------'Problems aren't over'
“We remain cautious because the sub-prime problems aren't over yet and there will be greater repercussions going forward,” said Leslie Phang, who helps manage $1 billion at Commonwealth Private Bank in Singapore. “A 25 basis point rate cut is more or less factored in and I don't think we'll see a bigger cut. The question is, what's next?”
Matsushita, the world's largest maker of consumer electronics, lost 1.9 percent to 2,325 yen. Stocks also decreased after the Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment dropped to 74.5, lower than forecast, renewing speculation spending will be dented in the U.S., Asia's largest export market.
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Taiwan's biggest electronics exporter, dropped 2 percent to NT$200. The shares also slid after the Ministry of Finance said Taiwan's export shipments increased 11.8 percent from a year earlier, missing the median forecast of a 15 percent gain in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
-------------------- PetroChina, Sinopec
PetroChina fell 3.5 percent to HK$15.32 in Hong Kong, halting a three-day, 6.7 percent jump. Inpex, Japan's largest oil explorer, slid 3.3 percent to 1.16 million yen. Woodside Petroleum Ltd., Australia's second-largest oil and gas producer, fell 2.1 percent to A$47.30.
Crude oil for January delivery decreased as much as 0.8 percent to $87.58 a barrel in after-hours electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after sliding 2.2 percent on Dec. 7. Futures were recently at $87.67.
In China, the CSI 300 completed its longest winning streak in two months, following its 6.4 percent jump last week. The measure had its sharpest monthly slump in November since it was created in 2005.
China Petroleum, Asia's largest refiner and also known as Sinopec, gained 1.3 percent to 23.03 yuan after state-run Xinhua News Agency said its parent, China Petrochemical Corp., signed a $2 billion agreement to develop Iran's Yadavaran oilfield.
Aluminum Corp. jumped 8.7 percent to 40.73 yuan, the most since Nov. 14, after the company said it received conditional approval for its takeover of Baotou Aluminum Co. The Beijing-based company, also known as Chalco, will make an announcement when it receives the official approval document, it said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Dec. 7.
Chinese shares also gained after the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said on Dec. 9 it will triple the amount of money overseas institutions can invest in yuan-denominated stocks and bonds to $30 billion.
Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's second-biggest shipbuilder, dropped 6.4 percent to 39,300 won, its lowest close since Aug. 21. A barge operated by the company collided with an oil tanker, leading to the world's worst oil spill in 4 1/2 years.
Aluminum Corp. of China (601600 CH)
Bank of China Ltd. (3988 HK)
China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (600028 CH)
Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA AU)
Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (2317 TT)
HSBC Holdings Plc. (5 HK)
Inpex Holdings Inc. (1605 JT)
Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.
National Australia Bank Ltd. (NAB AU)
PetroChina Co. (857 HK)
Samsung Heavy Industries Co. (010140 KS)
United Overseas Bank Ltd. (UOB SP)
Woodside Petroleum Ltd. (WPL AU)