Asian shares mostly gain, Tokyo closed as more tests for markets loom

BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stocks were mostly higher in calm trading Monday ahead of this week’s key reports on the state of the U.S. economy.

Oil prices rose and US futures rose.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.1 percent at 17,108.28 and the Shanghai Composite was down 0.1 percent at 2,858.20.

Markets in Tokyo and Bangkok were closed for the holidays.

In Seoul, the Kospi rose 1.2 percent to 2,618.30 as Samsung Electronics shares gained 1.1 percent, tracking gains in big tech companies late last week. Taiwan’s Taiex advanced 1.4 percent, while chip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. added 0.6 percent and electronics maker Hon Hai Precision Electronics, also known as Foxconn, rose 4.5 percent.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.5 percent to 7,813.70.

Last week got off to a shaky start as markets jittered after a sharp sell-off sparked by concerns that the US economy could be slowing too quickly. Japanese stocks suffered their biggest percentage loss since Black Monday in 1987. But it ended calmly after several large US companies joined the pile-up by reporting better-than-expected spring earnings.

“The recent string of stronger-than-expected US economic data helped dismiss recession concerns, with rate expectations now suggesting the US Federal Reserve (Fed) may retain more flexibility in its policy easing process, compared with one being forced by higher economic risks,” IG’s Yeap Jun Rong said in a comment.

On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 0.5 percent to 5,344.16, hitting its best day since 2022 and trimming its losses after the weekly run to less than 0.1 percent.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 percent to 39,497.54 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5 percent to 16,745.30.

In addition to inflation reports, this week will also bring updates on retail sales and unemployment.

The latest jobs report raised hopes for the economy after spooked investors the previous week. Households at the lower end of the income spectrum have been struggling for some time to keep up with still rising prices, but economists expect the report to show a return to growth after a slowdown in retail spending in June.

A worst-case scenario would be if Tuesday and Wednesday’s inflation reports show larger-than-expected increases in prices at the wholesale and consumer levels, while the rest of the week’s reports show a sharp weakening of the economy.

The frenzy surrounding artificial intelligence has allowed a handful of Big Tech stocks to drive the S&P 500 to dozens of all-time highs this year, even as high rates have hurt other areas of the market. But the group of stocks known as the Magnificent Seven lost steam last month amid criticism investors got carried away and overpriced.

The story continues

All of the Magnificent Seven rose on Friday except for Nvidia, which fell 0.2 percent.

Concerns remain about the strength of the US economy. They pushed Treasury yields lower on Friday as investors sought safer places for their money and expectations built for deeper rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 3.94 percent from 3.99 percent late Thursday.

“Market prices suggest that traders remain nervous about the ongoing assessment of monetary policy rates, and last week’s volatility may serve as a warning that we could be just one or two bad prints away from further turmoil,” Benjamin. Picton, a senior market strategist at Rabobank, said in a report.

In other trading early Monday, benchmark U.S. crude oil rebounded, gaining 58 cents to $77.44 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, the international standard, rose 44 cents to $80.10 a barrel.

The US dollar rose to 147.25 Japanese yen from 146.63 yen. The euro rose to $1.0923 from $1.0919.