Asian stock markets are mostly lower on Monday, with some of the markets erasing early gains despite the positive cues from Wall Street in a truncated session on Friday. Investors are now looking ahead to key data from major economies, including the U.S., Japan and China, later this week.
The Australian market recovered after a weak start and is advancing following the positive cues from Wall Street as well as on higher commodity prices. Mining, bank and oil stocks are modestly higher.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is adding 22.60 points or 0.38 percent to 6,005.20, after falling to a low of 5,978.10 in early trades. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 23.10 points or 0.38 percent to 6,086.20.
In the mining space, BHP Billiton is adding 0.2 percent, Rio Tinto is rising 0.3 percent and Fortescue Metals is advancing almost 2 percent following a boost in iron ore prices.
The big four banks are also advancing. ANZ Banking, National Australia Bank, Westpac and Commonwealth Bank are higher in a range of 0.1 percent to 0.4 percent.
Oil stocks are higher after crude oil prices rose to a two-year high on Friday. Oil Search is up 0.1 percent, Woodside Petroleum is adding 0.2 percent and Santos is rising 0.4 percent.
Meanwhile, gold miners are mixed after gold prices fell Friday for its first weekly drop in three weeks. Newcrest Mining is losing 1 percent, while Evolution Mining is adding almost 1 percent.
Shares of Downer EDI are gaining more than 4 percent after the engineering group raised its full-year profit outlook, citing larger-than-expected cost savings following its purchase of a 87.8 percent stake in Spotless.
In the currency market, the Australian dollar is lower against the U.S. dollar on Monday. In early trades, the local unit was quoted at US$0.7611, down from US$0.7621 on Friday.
The Japanese market slipped into negative territory, after opening higher following the positive cues from Wall Street and on a slightly weaker yen.
In late-morning trades, the benchmark Nikkei 225 Index is declining 62.90 points or 0.28 percent to 22,487.95, after rising to a high of 22,659.33 in early trades.
Among the major exporters, Sony is advancing more than 1 percent, Panasonic is adding 0.5 percent and Mitsubishi Electric is edging up less than 0.1 percent, while Canon is down 0.3 percent. SoftBank is up 0.2 percent and Fast Retailing is rising 0.6 percent.
In the banking sector, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial is higher by 0.3 percent and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial is adding 0.2 percent. Among automakers, Toyota is rising 0.4 percent and Honda is edging up less than 0.1 percent.
In the oil space, Inpex is declining 0.3 percent, while Japan Petroleum is adding 0.5 percent each.
Among the market's best performers, Pioneer Corp. is rising more than 4 percent, Fujitsu is advancing more than 2 percent and NEC Corp. is adding almost 2 percent.
On the flip side, Ebara Corp. and Sumco Corp. are losing almost 3 percent each, while Tosoh Corp. and Japan Steel Works are down more than 2 percent each.
On the economic front, the Bank of Japan said on Monday that producer prices in Japan were up 0.8 percent on year in October. That was shy of expectations for an increase of 0.9 percent, which would have been unchanged from the September reading.
In the currency market, the U.S. dollar is trading in the mid 111 yen-range on Monday.
Elsewhere in Asia, Shanghai, South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan are also lower. New Zealand is modestly higher.
On Wall Street, stocks saw modest strength in an abbreviated trading session on Friday following the Thanksgiving Day holiday on Thursday. Trading activity remained subdued, however, as many traders remained away from their desks following the holiday.
The Dow inched up 31.81 points or 0.1 percent to 23,557.99, the Nasdaq climbed 21.80 points or 0.3 percent to 6,889.16 and the S&P 500 rose 5.34 points or 0.2 percent to 2,602.42.
The major European markets turned in a mixed performance on Friday. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent, while the French CAC 40 Index rose by 0.2 percent and the German DAX Index climbed by 0.4 percent.
Crude oil futures jumped to their highest in two years Friday amid supply interruptions in North America and expectations that OPEC will extend its output cuts through 2018. January WTI oil rose $0.93 or 1.6 percent to $58.95 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange in thin holiday trade as many traders in the US remained on Thanksgiving break.
by RTT Staff Writer
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