Asian Shares Rise On Mixed China Data

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Monday as investors reacted to escalating tensions in the Middle East and a mixed bag of data from China.

The dollar held steady on heightened Middle East geopolitical tensions as the conflict between Iran and Israel entered its fourth day, with the number of deaths mounting on both sides.

Crude oil prices steadied after surging 7 percent on Friday while gold dipped toward $3,400 per ounce.

China's Shanghai Composite index rose 0.35 percent to 3,383.73 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed up 0.70 percent at 24,060.99.

China's factory output growth hit a six-month low in May, while retail sales picked up steam, signaling potential resilience in consumer demand amid a fragile truce in the country's trade war with the United States.

Japanese markets rallied as a weaker yen boosted export-related stocks. The Nikkei average jumped 1.26 percent to 38,311.33 ahead of the Bank of Japan's upcoming policy meeting, with the central bank widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged. The broader Topix index settled 0.75 percent higher at 2,777.13.

Seoul stocks surged, driven by big gains the defense, energy and IT sectors. The Kospi average climbed 1.80 percent to 2,946.66.

Hanwha Systems soared 18 percent and Doosan Enerbility surged 9.2 percent, while SK Hynix, HD Hyundai Electric, Hyundai Rotem added 5-6 percent.

Australian markets gave up early gains to end on a flat note. Energy stocks rallied on higher oil prices, offsetting weak performance across gold miners.

Oil & gas producer Santos soared nearly 11 percent following a $18.7 billion takeover bid by a consortium led by a unit of Abu Dhabi's National Oil Company.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index jumped 1.09 percent to 12,690.13, buoyed by gains in energy-related stocks.

U.S. stocks fell sharply on Friday as a deadly Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear facilities and Iran's retaliation heightened tensions in West Asia.

In economic releases, a measure of U.S. consumer sentiment rose by the most since January 2024 and short-term inflation expectations showed a marked improvement.

The Dow plummeted 1.8 percent, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite tumbled 1.3 percent and the S&P 500 declined 1.1 percent.