Asian Stocks Showed Gains, Tokyo Closed, And US Economic Reports Awaited

Asian shares were mostly higher during quiet trading, as investors awaited significant US economic reports due later this week.

Sophia Cruz•Monday, August 12, 2024•1 min read

US stock markets surged again on the Trump trade

In today’s trading, Asian shares were mostly higher during quiet trading, as investors awaited significant US economic reports due later this week.

Asian Stocks Showed Gains, Tokyo Closed, And US Economic Reports Awaited

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index inched up by 0.1% to 17,108.28, while the Shanghai Composite Index dipped slightly by 0.1% to 2,858.20.

Hong Kong stocks experienced fluctuations as traders remained cautious ahead of important Chinese economic data, while other markets in the region rebounded from last week’s sell-off.

Casino operators saw sharp declines after local authorities announced plans to tighten regulations. Tencent rose 1.2% to HK$374.60, and Alibaba gained 0.6% to HK$78.30 ahead of their upcoming earnings reports. HSBC increased by 0.5% to HK$64.25, and Bank of China (HK) added 0.4% to HK$22.40, leading to gains among local banks.

Traders are also closely watching this week’s economic data to assess whether China’s economy is gaining momentum. Retail sales are expected to have grown by 2.6% in July, while industrial production growth is anticipated to slow to 5.2%, according to a Bloomberg survey of economists.

Sentiment improved after the People’s Bank of China, in its second-quarter monetary policy report last Friday, pledged to “create a favorable monetary and financial environment for achieving the full-year economic and social development goals.”

Meanwhile, markets in Tokyo and Bangkok were closed due to the holidays.

In Seoul, Kospi rose 1.2% to 2,618.30, driven by a 1.1% increase in Samsung Electronics, following gains in Big Tech stocks from late last week. Taiwan’s Taiex, on the other hand, climbed 1.4%, with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. up 0.6% and electronics giant Hon Hai Precision Electronics, known as Foxconn, surging 4.5%.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR See More

Sophia Cruz

Financial Writer - Asian & European Desks

Sophia is an experienced writer, reporter and newsdesk member, mostly on the financial sectors. For the past 5 years Sophia has covered a wide variety of topics such as the financial markets, economics, technology, fin-tech and trading. Sophia has been a part of the FX Leaders team since 2017 and works on producing valuable content and information for traders of all levels of experience.