Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Monday as investors weighed a sell-off in United States technology stocks and awaited fresh policy guidance from the Reserve Bank of Australia, which began its two-day meeting with expectations it will leave rates unchanged at 3.6%.
By 11:15 am AEST (1:15 am GMT), Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.9%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped 0.7%. South Korea’s Kospi 200 gained 1.3%.
The mixed performance followed Wall Street’s rebound on Friday, where the major benchmarks ended higher after three straight sessions of losses.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.7%, the S&P 500 added 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.4%. Despite the bounce, all three closed the week lower.
In commodities, Brent crude climbed 1% to settle at US$69.22 per barrel, its highest level since 1 August. Spot gold advanced 0.3% to US$3,759.86 per ounce, hovering near record highs.
Chinese equities came under pressure, with the Shanghai Composite dropping 0.7% to 3,828.1 and the CSI 300 retreating 1% to 4,550.0.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index slid 1.4% to 26,128.2, while India’s BSE Sensex fell 0.9% to 80,426.5.
European stocks closed in positive territory on Friday, with London’s FTSE 100 up 0.8% to 9,284.8. Germany’s DAX rose 0.9% to 23,739.5, while France’s CAC 40 gained 1% to 7,870.7.
