Shares in Asia-Pacific were mostly higher on Monday while oil prices jumped as the first trading day of 2021 kicked off.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 returned to trading by dropping 185.79 points, or 0.7% to 27,258.38
Developments surrounding the coronavirus likely continued weighing on investor sentiment, as the pandemic rages on globally while vaccines have started being rolled out in some countries.
In Asia, Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Monday the government is considering declaring a state of emergency in Tokyo and neighboring prefectures which have been hit by rising Covid cases, according to Kyodo News.
The Japanese yen traded at 102.86 per U.S. dollar after strengthening from levels above 103.5 against the greenback last week.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong leaped 241.68 points, or 0.9%, to 27,258.38.
Shares of Chinese property developers listed in Hong Kong saw sharp declines after the People’s Bank of China recently issued a regulation to cap property loans by banks. China Evergrande Group shares in Hong Kong plunged 5.1% while Sunac China dropped 5.4% and China Vanke fell 3%.
Hong Kong-listed shares of Chinese telecommunications firms were mixed on Monday after the New York Stock Exchange’s announcement on Thursday that it will delist China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom Hong Kong.
Hong Kong-listed shares of China Mobile edged 0.8% lower while China Unicom advanced 0.5%. China Telecom’s stock slipped 2.8%.
The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7724 following its rise in the previous trading week from levels below $0.765.
CHINA
In Shanghai, the CSI 300 gained 56.43 points, or 1.1%, to 5,267.72.
A private survey released Monday showed Chinese manufacturing activity expanding in December, with the Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for the month coming in at 53.0. That compared against November’s reading of 54.9. The 50-level in PMI readings separates expansion from contraction.
China’s official manufacturing PMI released Thursday showed the country’s factory activity expanding in December, albeit at a slower pace compared to November’s reading.
In other markets
In New Zealand, markets remained shuttered for holiday.
In Korea, the Kospi index rocketed 70.98 points, or 2.5%, to 2,944,45
In Singapore, the Straits Times regained 15.09 points, or 0.5%, to begin 2021 at 2,858.90.
In Taiwan, the Taiex Index added 169.5 points, or 1.2%, to 14,902.03.
In Australia, the ASX 200 recovered 97.15 points, or 1.5%, to 6,684.24