Asian Shares Rebound On Tempered Middle East Fears

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks rebounded on Monday, while the dollar, oil and gold all pulled back from their recent highs as fears of a wider conflict in the Middle East ebbed.

Investors gravitated back towards riskier assets after Iran played down Israel's reported retaliatory attacks on its soil.

Meanwhile, a continued drop in oil prices on growth concerns and signs of rising inventory in the United States helped ease investor concerns surrounding inflation and interest rates.

China's Shanghai Composite index ended down 0.67 percent, at 3,044.60, giving up early gains as the People's Bank of China kept its 1-year and 5-year loan prime rates unchanged. Electric-vehicle makers declined as an escalating price war raised concerns over margins.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rallied 1.77 percent 16,511.69 after China's market regulator said it would facilitate Hong Kong listings by leading Chinese firms and expand the Stock Connect cross-border investment scheme.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission said 'it is necessary to consolidate and enhance Hong Kong's status as an international financial center'.

Japanese shares ended sharply higher as the yen weakened further ahead of upcoming Bank of Japan's policy review.

The Nikkei average rose 1 percent to 37,438.61, after having fallen 2.66 percent in its worst session in more than a year and a half on Friday.

The broader Topix index settled 1.38 percent higher at 2,662.46 even as chip-related stocks tumbled after big technology stocks logged their worst week since the COVID crash in 2020. Tokyo Electron and Advantest lost 3-4 percent.

Seoul stocks climbed, with the Kospi average rising 1.45 percent to 2,629.44. POSCO Holdings jumped 2.2 percent after the company announced various measures to reduce costs amid a slowdown in the global steel and battery industries.

Australian markets advanced, led by financials and mining stocks. The benchmark S&P ASX 200 climbed 1.08 percent to 7,649.20 ahead of key inflation data due on Wednesday. The broader All Ordinaries index gained 1.08 percent to close at 7,902.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P NZX-50 index closed up 0.48 percent at 11,852.80.

U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday, with tech stocks plummeting as Netflix provided disappointing revenue guidance.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite plunged 2.1 percent and the S&P 500 shed 0.9 percent to extend losses for the sixth straight session while the Dow rose 0.6 percent, led by financials and consumer staple stocks.