Asian markets made tentative gains Monday as investors shrugged off concerns about Greece’s debt situation and awaited the outcome of negotiations with its creditors.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index climbed 253.95 points, or 1.3%, to 20,428.19
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index jumped 320.32 points, or 1.2%, to 27,080.85.
European leaders are meeting in an emergency summit on Monday to discuss Greece. While the euro is expected to slump if Athens fails to reach an agreement with creditors — which could lead to buying of safe-haven assets like the Swiss franc and the Japanese yen — the currency has been surprisingly resilient, last trading at $1.14, compared with $1.1350 U.S. late Friday in New York. That’s in large part because of indications from the U.S. Federal Reserve that it will move slowly raising interest rates.
The Japanese yen was at ¥122.90 against the U.S. dollar, roughly flat from ¥122.70 late Friday in New York. The currency gained 0.6% last week, also amid expectations of a slow pace of rate increases in the U.S., which makes other assets more attractive by comparison.
The International Monetary Fund and euro-zone governments have been keeping Greece afloat with emergency loans for the past five years, but Greece needs urgent financial help to avoid it defaulting on a loan repayment to the IMF on June 30. On Sunday, Greece’s government pitched a package of proposals that is expected to set the tone for Monday’s meetings.
In other markets
Markets in mainland China were shuttered for holiday
The Taiex index in Taiwan returned from holiday to add 123.40 points, or 1.3%, to 9.341.77
In Korea, the Kospi index gained 8.20 points, or 0.4%, to 2,055.16
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index gained 14.17 points, or 0.4%, to 3,315.13
The NZX 50 lost 9.71 points, or 0.2%, to 5,772.05
The ASX 200 Index moved up 13.17 points, or 0.2%, to 5,610.17
