April 11 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks fell, with the Topix index having its first decline in five days. Elpida Memory Inc. led semiconductor shares lower after saying that full-year profit was at least a third less than it expected as chip prices dropped.

``I won't be too bullish on technology until I see the numbers show that demand is picking up,'' said Wee Ban Yew, who helps oversee $4.1 billion at OCBC Asset Management Ltd. in Singapore. Price declines are ``negative for the industry.''

Companies that rely on sales in China such as Komatsu Ltd. fell on concern anti-Japan demonstrations in China this weekend, in which Japanese businesses were targeted, will escalate.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average fell 129.11, or 1.1 percent, to 11,745.64 at the 3 p.m. close in Tokyo. The broader Topix dropped 11.18, or 0.9 percent, to 1190.12, with computer-related shares accounting for 17 percent of the decline.

Some 992 billion yen ($9.2 billion) in shares traded, 23 percent less than the daily average of 1.28 trillion for the past three months. Almost five stocks fell for every one that rose on the Tokyo Stock Exchange's first section.

Elpida, the world's fifth-largest memory-chip maker, slumped 210 yen, or 5 percent, to 3,970. Elpida said that net income was about 8.1 billion yen for the year ended March 31. The company, a venture between Hitachi Ltd. and NEC Corp., in January forecast profit to be between 12 billion yen and 16 billion yen.

Elpida's result renewed concern that declining prices will dent profits at chipmakers and their suppliers.

Advantest Corp., the world's biggest maker of equipment used to test computer memory chips, dropped 120 yen, or 1.4 percent, to 8,350. Tokyo Electron Ltd., the world's No. 2 maker of chip- production equipment, fell 150 yen, or 2.4 percent, to 6,180.

China Protests

Anti-Japan protests in China sparked concern relations will be harmed and lead to a boycott of Japanese goods. China surpassed the U.S. as Japan's biggest export market last year.

Komatsu, the world's second-biggest construction equipment maker, fell 25 yen, or 3.1 percent, to 796. Komatsu has construction machinery plants in Changzhou, about 150 miles from Shanghai, and Jining in the eastern province of Shandong.

Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Japan's No. 2 maker of construction machinery, fell 43 yen, or 2.9 percent, to 1,467. The company gets about 10 percent of its sales from China.

Protesters hurled rocks, bottles and eggs at the Japanese Embassy in Beijing on April 9 to protest Japanese textbooks that gloss over wartime atrocities, while as many as 15,000 Chinese staged protests outside Japanese-owned department stores in the southern cities of Guangzhou and Shenzhen yesterday.

The protests were the biggest since May 1999, when the Chinese embassy in Belgrade was bombed by U.S.-led NATO forces.

``As the demonstrations escalate, the risks are that people will stop working at Japanese factories, hurting production, and start boycotting all Japanese goods,'' said OCBC Asset's Wee.

Oil Prices

Shares of oil-related companies declined on concern earnings growth will slow as oil prices fell for a sixth day.

Inpex Corp., Japan's largest oil explorer, dropped 21,000 yen, or 3.4 percent, to 598,000. Japan Petroleum Exploration Co., the nation's second-biggest oil explorer, lost 40 yen, or 0.8 percent, to 4,700. AOC Holdings Inc., a smaller competitor, fell 44 yen, or 2.7 percent, to 1,583.

Crude oil, which fell 6.9 percent last week in New York, extended losses amid signs that U.S. inventories will be sufficient to meet raised demand by refiners making gasoline.

The contract for May delivery fell 0.6 percent to $53.00 a barrel in electronic after-hours trading in Sydney.

Measures of oil-related and mining companies have posted the biggest gains this year among the Topix's 33 industry groups, climbing 23 percent and 21 percent respectively, as higher oil prices boosted sales and profit margins.

World Co., a maker of clothing, accessories and bags, dropped 160 yen, or 4.3 percent, to 3,530. The company's rating was cut to ``neutral'' from ``buy'' by Takahiro Kazahaya, an analyst at Nomura Securities Co., citing the prospect of slower profit growth amid expectations the company will raise spending on retail floor space and television advertising.

Nikkei 225 June futures fell percent 1.2 percent to 11,740 in Osaka and dropped 1.1 percent to 11,740 in Singapore.

Advantest Corp. (6857 JT)
AOC Holdings Inc. (5017 JT)
Elpida Memory Inc. (6665 JT)
Hitachi Construction Machinery Co. (6305 JT)
Hitachi Ltd. (6501 JT)
Inpex Corp. (1604 JT)
Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. (1662 JT)
Komatsu Ltd. (6301 JT)
NEC Corp. (6701 JT)
Tokyo Electron Ltd.(8035 JT)
World Co. (3596 JO)

To contact the reporter for this story: Michael Tsang in Tokyo at mtsang1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 11, 2005 02:52 EDT