Asian Shares Mostly Higher In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks were mostly higher on Monday as trade tensions persisted, China held key lending rates and Japan's ruling coalition lost control of the upper house in an election on Sunday, further weakening Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's grip on power.

Investors also looked ahead to a busy week of U.S. earnings, housing market data and comments from central bankers, including Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell at a banking conference as U.S. President Donald Trump piles pressure on him over rates and renovations at the U.S. central bank's headquarters.

After big U.S. banks and Netflix reported quarterly earnings last week, Tesla and Google parent Alphabet are set to unveil their earnings results on Wednesday, followed by Intel on Thursday.

The Japanese yen held steady as focus shifted to key trade and economic developments ahead of Trump's August 1 tariff deadline, with the European Union reportedly preparing for possible retaliatory measures against U.S. tariffs as trade tensions escalate.

Gold was marginally higher at $3,354 an ounce as investors absorb mixed signals from Federal Reserve officials regarding potential interest-rate cuts.

Oil prices were little changed in Asian trade as investors weigh the prospect of increased supply from OPEC+ against new sanctions on Russia.

China's Shanghai Composite index was up 0.4 percent as the People's Bank of China held the 1-year loan prime rate at 3.0 percent and 5-year LPR at 3.5 percent, as expected.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index also traded 0.4 percent higher after reports suggested that U.S. President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping might meet ahead of the October APEC summit.

Japan's stock and bond markets remain closed as the ruling coalition lost control of the upper house in an election. Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announced he has no intention to step down, pledging to redouble efforts on economic diplomacy.

Seoul stocks traded higher, with the Kospi average rising nearly half a percent, led by gains in big-cap tech shares.

Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 fell almost 1 percent, retreating from a record high reached in the previous session, as caution prevailed ahead of the release of the RBA meeting minutes and a speech by Governor Michele Bullock.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index was up half a percent.

U.S. stocks ended narrowly mixed on Friday after reports emerged that President Trump is demanding a minimum tariff of between 15 percent and 20 percent in any deal with the EU irrespective even if a trade deal is arrived at.

Investors also reacted to upbeat economic data and Netflix's unimpressive revenue forecast. Data showed U.S. consumer sentiment rose to a five-month high in early July as expectations about the economy and inflation continued to improve.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite inched up marginally to reach a new record closing high while the S&P 500 finished marginally lower and the Dow eased 0.3 percent. European stocks ended mixed on Friday as lingering trade tensions offset some fairly strong earnings updates.

The pan European STOXX 600 ended flat with a negative bias. The German DAX dipped 0.3 percent, while France's CAC 40 finished marginally higher and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 added 0.2 percent.