Asian stocks fell, led by consumer companies and banks, after South Korea said it’s “unclear” whether the economic rebound will be sustained and New Zealand’s unemployment rate rose to a nine-year high.

Samsung Electronics Co., Asia’s biggest maker of chips and mobile phones, lost 2.3 percent in Seoul as the country’s finance ministry said factory production probably slowed in October. Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. sank 8.6 percent after brokerages cut their share-price targets. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. lost 1.4 percent in Wellington, where the statistics bureau said the jobless rate climbed to 6.5 percent in the third quarter.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index dropped 0.7 percent to 114.52 as of 12:44 p.m. in Tokyo. The gauge has slumped 5.5 percent from a 13-month high on Oct. 20 amid concerns the withdrawal of stimulus measures will cause the global recovery to falter. The index is still up 62 percent from a five-year low on March 9.

“The market is now reaching the point where monetary stimulus policies stop pushing up asset prices and earnings become the main focus,” said Koichi Kurose, who helps oversee $4.6 billion as chief strategist at Resona Bank Ltd.

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