Asia-Pacific lost momentum on Monday as major indexes pared some of their gains while others struggled to advance. Investors are looking ahead to this week’s Federal Reserve meeting stateside.
The Nikkei 225 gained 49.14 points, or 0.2%, to 29,766.97.
Tech giant Rakuten jumped 24.1% after the company said Friday that it will issue new shares to raise $2.2 billion U.S. in capital to compete with its U.S. rivals. Japan Post is expected to take a 8.3% stake in Rakuten, while China’s Tencent will take 3.6% and U.S. retail giant Walmart takes a 0.9% stake.
The Japanese yen weakened to the 109 level, trading at 109.15 against the U.S. dollar compared to an earlier high around 108.90.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng regained 94.04 points, or 0.3%, to 28,833.76.
In Singapore, markets rose as shares of Singapore Airlines jumped 5.1% following reports that the city-state is in talks to set up an air travel bubble with Australia.
Australian markets nicked forward. The energy sector gained 0.8% while the materials sector slipped 0.6%. The heavily-weighted financials sub-index rose 0.3%.
Meanwhile, the Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7737, slipping from a previous level around $0.7775.
The Federal Open Market Committee is due to meet on March 16 and 17 and some analysts expect the U.S. central bank to revise up its GDP forecast, following a $1.9-trillion fiscal stimulus package that will send direct payments of up to $1,400 to most Americans.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell “is likely to tie the path of rates to a comprehensive economic improvement whilst stressing tolerance for a modest inflation overshoot,' the ANZ analysts added.
CHINA
In China, the CSI 300 shed 110.84 points, or 2.2%, to 5,035.54.
A year since the coronavirus pandemic hit, China’s young people are still finding it hard to land jobs, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics. The unemployment rate for those aged between 16 and 24 was significantly higher than the national urban jobless rate.
In other markets
In Taiwan, the Taiex dropped 5.85 points to 16,249.33.
In Korea, the Kospi index reversed 8.68 points, or 0.3%, to 3,045.71.
In Singapore, the Straits Times index faded 10.78 points, or 0.4%, to 3,106.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 jumped 165.49 points, or 1.3%, to 12,592.26
In Australia, the ASX 200 moved higher 6.2 points, or 0.1%, to 6,773.01.
