Asia shares waver amid H. Kong weakness

Asia shares fluctuated in and out of positive territory on Monday, pressured by weakness in Hong Kong stocks, while bitcoin reached a three-month peak amid rising “Trump trades”.

The global uncertainty driven by the conflict in the Middle East and the closely contested US presidential election boosted bullion’s appeal, pushing gold to another record high.

Optimism over Beijing’s slew of stimulus measures, first announced in late September, has recently turned to caution as investors await further details on additional fiscal support from policymakers.

China lowered its benchmark lending rates as expected on Monday. The blue-chip index initially fluctuated but ended higher in the afternoon, driven by technology companies.

The benchmark rose by 0.4 per cent, the Shanghai Composite Index by 0.31 per cent, and the Beijing Stock Exchange 50 Index surged to a record high, supported by initiatives to aid small- and medium-sized tech firms.

The announcement did not spark enthusiasm in Hong Kong markets, leading to a more than one per cent decline in stocks. As a result, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares, excluding Japan, also fell by 0.26 per cent. On the other hand, Japan’s Nikkei saw a slight increase of 0.12 per cent.

“We might have to wait until late October or early November for concrete plans from the Standing Committee meeting of the National People’s Congress,” said Chaoping Zhu, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management in Shanghai.

The dollar hovered near a two-month high against a basket of currencies on Monday, with the dollar index last at 103.49. Sterling dipped 0.05 per cent to $1.3041, while the euro fell 0.06 per cent to $1.0861.

Oil prices ticked higher on Monday, nursing a steep fall from last week. Brent crude futures were last 0.6 per cent higher at $73.49 a barrel, while US crude rose 0.7 per cent to $69.70 per barrel.

Attribution: Reuters

Subediting: M. S. Salama