Asian Shares Rise As China Unveils Plans To Boost Consumption

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks advanced on Monday after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he is "not worried" about the recent market downturn and China announced plans featuring measures to boost wages and stabilize stock and real estate markets.

The U.S. dollar hovered close to a five-month low against its major peers as U.S. President Donald Trump reinforced his trade policy stance, saying there will be no exceptions to U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs.

Gold edged up slightly ahead of this week's highly anticipated monetary policy announcements by major central banks, including the Federal Reserve, the Bank of Japan and the Bank of England.

Crude oil prices extended gains following the U.S. military strikes on the Iran-backed Houthi militants.

China's Shanghai Composite index edged up by 0.19 percent to 3,426.13 before a briefing by officials on consumption plans.

Xinhua reported authorities will provide details on policies to stabilize the stock and real estate markets, lift wages and boost the nation's birth rate.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index ended up 0.77 percent at 24,145.57 after China's industrial output and retail sales figures topped expectations.

However, unemployment rose and housing prices continued to fall in most major cities, muddying Beijing's drive to boost flagging consumption in the world's second-largest economy.

Japanese markets rose sharply, with gains seen across the board following a surge in U.S. stocks at the end of last week.

The Nikkei average jumped 0.93 percent to 37,396.52 while the broader Topix index settled 1.19 percent higher at 2,748.12. Chip-related stocks climbed, with Advantest and Tokyo Electron rising 2-3 percent.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries soared 12.2 percent, Kawasaki Heavy Industries surged 6 percent and IHI Corp added 9.7 percent on expectations that Japan may beef up its defense spending in the future.

Seoul stocks rallied, with the Kospi average finishing up 1.73 percent at 2,610.69 as tech shares gained on solid foreign buying. Market heavyweight Samsung Electronics soared 5.3 percent.

Australian markets advanced as China's efforts to boost consumption lifted mining stocks. Financials also surged to snap a nine-day losing streak.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.83 percent to 7,854.10 while the broader All Ordinaries index closed up 0.86 percent at 8,082.10.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index fell 0.82 percent to 12,166.14 after a survey showed activity in the country's services sector fell back into contraction territory in February.

U.S. stocks rose sharply on Friday but posted steep losses for the week due to uncertainties around President Trump's tariff policies.

Investors shrugged off data that showed U.S. consumer sentiment plunged to a nearly 2-1/2-year low in March and long-term inflation expectations hit their highest level in 32 years.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 2.6 percent, the S&P 500 rallied 2.1 percent and the Dow climbed 1.7 percent to cap a volatile week as the risk of a government shutdown eased.