Investing.com – Asian stocks were mixed on Monday, amid indications the U.S. economic recovery was gaining momentum, while Japanese exporters advanced as the yen weakened.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 1.46%, South Korea's Kospi Composite added 0.47%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.46%.
The U.S. Department of Labor said Friday that the U.S. economy added significantly fewer than expected jobs in January as severe winter weather across much of the U.S. weighed on results. However, the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to its lowest level in two years.
Meanwhile, shares in many of the big name Japanese exporters advanced as the yen declined, boosting the outlook for export earnings.
Shares in the world’s largest automaker Toyota climbed 1.07%, digital camera maker Nikon, which gets approximately 70% of its revenue abroad saw shares jump 2.04%, while shares in rival camera-maker Olympus added 1.03%.
Shares in video-game maker Sega Sammy Holdings rallied 2.98% to close at the highest price since July 2007 after the company said net income for the April-December period jumped 54% to JPY36.8 billion.
In Hong Kong, shares in property developers led losses after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao pledged to curb property speculation in his Lunar New Year speech delivered on Saturday.
Shares in Hong Kong’s second largest property developer Sino Land Company dropped 2.88%, rival Hang Lung Properties saw shares tumble 3.18%, while shares in Sung Hung Kai Properties sank 0.85%.
Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.12% as shares in Prime Infrastructure Group soared 8.72% after the Reserve Bank of Australia said flood rebuilding was expected to accelerate in the second quarter of 2011.
However, shares in retailers performed poorly after official data showed that retail sales in Australia rose by 0.2% in December, falling short of expectations for a rise of 0.5%.
Shares in the nation’s largest department store retailer Myer Holdings plunged 11.23%, rival David Jones saw shares drop 4.23%, while shares in Harvey Norman Holdings sank 3.62%.
The outlook for European equity markets, meanwhile, was modestly downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a loss of 0.13%, France’s CAC 40 futures indicated a drop of 0.11%, the FTSE 100 futures pointed to a decrease of 0.14%, while Germany's DAX futures were down 0.02%.
Later in the day, Germany was to release official data on factory orders, while the U.S. was to publish a report on consumer credit.
During late Asian trade, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index slumped 1.46%, South Korea's Kospi Composite added 0.47%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index climbed 0.46%.
The U.S. Department of Labor said Friday that the U.S. economy added significantly fewer than expected jobs in January as severe winter weather across much of the U.S. weighed on results. However, the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell to its lowest level in two years.
Meanwhile, shares in many of the big name Japanese exporters advanced as the yen declined, boosting the outlook for export earnings.
Shares in the world’s largest automaker Toyota climbed 1.07%, digital camera maker Nikon, which gets approximately 70% of its revenue abroad saw shares jump 2.04%, while shares in rival camera-maker Olympus added 1.03%.
Shares in video-game maker Sega Sammy Holdings rallied 2.98% to close at the highest price since July 2007 after the company said net income for the April-December period jumped 54% to JPY36.8 billion.
In Hong Kong, shares in property developers led losses after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao pledged to curb property speculation in his Lunar New Year speech delivered on Saturday.
Shares in Hong Kong’s second largest property developer Sino Land Company dropped 2.88%, rival Hang Lung Properties saw shares tumble 3.18%, while shares in Sung Hung Kai Properties sank 0.85%.
Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.12% as shares in Prime Infrastructure Group soared 8.72% after the Reserve Bank of Australia said flood rebuilding was expected to accelerate in the second quarter of 2011.
However, shares in retailers performed poorly after official data showed that retail sales in Australia rose by 0.2% in December, falling short of expectations for a rise of 0.5%.
Shares in the nation’s largest department store retailer Myer Holdings plunged 11.23%, rival David Jones saw shares drop 4.23%, while shares in Harvey Norman Holdings sank 3.62%.
The outlook for European equity markets, meanwhile, was modestly downbeat. The EURO STOXX 50 futures pointed to a loss of 0.13%, France’s CAC 40 futures indicated a drop of 0.11%, the FTSE 100 futures pointed to a decrease of 0.14%, while Germany's DAX futures were down 0.02%.
Later in the day, Germany was to release official data on factory orders, while the U.S. was to publish a report on consumer credit.