Asian Shares Mostly Higher On Sino-US Trade Talk Optimism

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks rose broadly on Monday amid hopes that another round of U.S.-China trade talks that will take place in London later today could help ease trade tensions between the two superpowers.

Beijing confirmed that Vice Premier He Lifeng will attend the talks. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer would likely be present with the U.S. delegation.

The dollar slipped against all major currencies, helping gold prices recover some ground after a two percent loss over the previous two sessions. Oil prices eased as data showed China's crude oil imports declined in May to the lowest daily rate in four months.

Chinese markets eked out modest gains after the release of inflation and trade data. The benchmark Shanghai Composite index rose 0.43 percent to 3,399.77 while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index climbed 1.63 percent to 24,181.43.

China's consumer price inflation dipped 0.1 percent year-on-year in May, while producer deflation deepened to its worst level in almost two years, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

China's May export growth slowed to a three-month low while imports declined from last year due to weak demand, separate data from the customs office revealed.

Japanese markets rose sharply as the country reported progress in its fifth round of trade talks with the United States and revised data showed the economy contracted slightly less than initially estimated in the first quarter.

The Nikkei average jumped 0.92 percent to 38,088.57 while the broader Topix index settled 0.58 percent higher at 2,785.41. Chip stocks rallied ahead of U.S.-China talks, with Advantest surging nearly 5 percent.

Seoul stocks led regional gains on investor optimism over the new president's push for shareholder-friendly policies.

The Kospi average jumped 1.55 percent to 2,855.77, reaching an 11-month high and extending its winning streak for a fourth consecutive session.

Semiconductor and auto shares led the surge, with Hyundai Motor rallying 4.3 percent and SK Hynix adding 2 percent.

Australian markets were closed for a public holiday. Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index ended down 0.19 percent at 12,539.26, giving up early gains.

U.S. stocks surged on Friday as a better-than-expected monthly jobs report following some recent downbeat data helped ease economic concerns and Tesla recovered part of the losses from a significant drop in the previous session.

Data showed non-farm payroll employment shot up by 139,000 jobs in May after a downwardly revised 147,000 jobs in April. The unemployment rate came in unchanged at 4.2 percent.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.2 percent and the S&P 500 gained 1 percent to reach their best closing levels in over three months while the narrower Dow climbed 1.1 percent.