Asian Shares Rise; Nikkei Outperforms On Weaker Yen

Asian stocks rose broadly on Monday, with Japanese markets leading regional gains after the country’s ruling Liberal Democratic party lost its majority in Parliament’s lower house in weekend elections, triggering a sharp fall in the yen to a three-month low and boosting export-related shares.

The dollar firmed up and gold inched lower amid heightened global uncertainties and ahead of key U.S. inflation, GDP and labor market data due later in the week.

Oil prices were down more than 4 percent in Asian trading after Israel’s attack on Iran over the weekend avoided oil and nuclear facilities and Tehran signaled a measured response.

China’s Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.7 percent to 3,322.20 ahead of key economic activity readings due this week.

Investors shrugged off data that showed China’s industrial profits in September dropped at its fastest pace since the pandemic.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index finished marginally higher at 20,599.36 after a volatile session.

Japanese markets logged strong gains as a weaker yen lifted exporters like Honda Motor, Toyota, Sony and Nintendo up by 2-4 percent.

The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 1.8 percent to 38,605.53 as the ruling party defeat had been greatly factored in by markets. The broader Topix Index closed 1.5 percent higher at 2,657.78.

Seoul stocks rallied on the back of gains in the technology sector, with heavyweight Samsung Electronics rising 3.9 percent.

Korea Zinc jumped 3.8 percent after announcing it has secured 9.85 percent of the company’s shares in a $1.5 billion buyback. The Kospi closed up 1.1 percent at 2,612.43.

Australian markets ended modestly higher as financials lagged behind, offsetting gains in the mining sector propelled by spiking iron ore prices.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index inched up 0.1 percent to 8,221.50 ahead of upcoming domestic inflation data. The broader All Ordinaries Index settled 0.1 percent higher at 8,478.20.

The New Zealand market was closed for the Labour Day holiday.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday as investors braced for a busy week of earnings and economic data releases.

Adding to optimism over the economic outlook, a survey showed U.S. consumer sentiment unexpectedly improved in October.

The Dow shed 0.6 percent to close lower for the fifth straight day and the S&P 500 edged down marginally, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.6 percent.

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