Investing.com - Shares in Asia gained on Monday in thin trade with China markets shut for a week-long holiday and U.S. jobs data at the end of the week a key focus.
The Nikkei 225 rose 1.12%, while the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.83%.
In Japan, the third quarter Tankan survey showed the large manufacturing index at plus-6, below the plus-8 figure expected and unchanged from the previous period.
In the second quarter survey, companies on average continued to revise down their inflation outlook for one and five years ahead from three months ago as core consumer prices, which exclude fresh food, continued to be weak and private demand remained sluggish.
The Bank of Japan is seeking to form an appropriate yield curve in order to hit its 2% inflation target under the new monetary easing framework adopted last week, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said in a speech Thursday.At its next policy meeting Oct. 31-Nov. 1, the BoJ board will review its medium-term growth and inflation outlook through March 2019. Inflation expectations among businesses in the September Tankan due out on Tuesday will provide a clue as to whether the outlook is being revised down again.
Earlier, in Australia, the AIG manufacturing index came in at 49.8, recouping some of the sharp fall in August and moving closer to the expansion zone above 50.
"With business investment the major missing ingredient to a more comprehensive lift in domestic activity, there is a clear need for policy action in this area. In considering the Government's Enterprise Tax Plan, federal parliamentarians should consider the material improvement to the investment outlook that would come from a reduction in the company tax rate," AI Group Chief Executive Innes Willox said.
At the weekend, the semi-official PMI from the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing (CFLP) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) came in at 50.4 in September, unchanged from last week and as expected.
Markets in Germany are also shut on Monday.
In the coming week, the U.S. nonfarm payrolls report on Friday is seen by many as the clearest sign on the health of the labor market, amid ongoing speculation over whether U.S. interest rates will rise this year.
The Fed raised rates for the first time in almost a decade in December and forecast rates would rise four times this year, but officials have recently acknowledged that the mixed economic recovery means rates are likely to remain lower for longer.
The Fed’s next meeting is in November, but a rate hike ahead of the presidential election is seen as unlikely.
Last week, U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Oil & Gas, Healthcare and Consumer Services sectors led shares higher.
At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.91%, while the S&P 500 index climbed 0.80%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 0.81%.