China stocks continued edging higher Tuesday, pushing the gains in the smaller Shenzhen Composite to more than 20% from the market low on July 8.
In Japan, markets returned after a long weekend, and the Nikkei 225 index sprinted ahead 191.05 points, or 0.9%, to 20.841.97
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index regained 131.62 to 25,536.43.
Gold continues to hit new five-year lows and traded down 0.3% to $1,103.30 U.S. in Asian trade. Analysts say any price below $1,100 an ounce stings, as that is the break-even cost for many miners.
Oil prices also declined with Brent falling fractionally to $56.51 U.S. a barrel. U.S. oil prices dropped below $50 a barrel overnight for the first time since April and recently traded below that psychological threshold at $49.99.
Meanwhile, currencies of commodity-producing countries like Australia have been in decline as export revenue tumbles, hammering economic growth and employment. Tuesday’s modest declines bring the Australian dollar’s losses for 2015 to 9.9% at $0.7362 U.S.
In other currency markets, South Korea’s won hit its weakest point since June 2013.
Higher interest rates would make the U.S. dollar more attractive to investors looking for higher-yielding assets. But the dollar’s gains are a burden for commodities, which are priced in the U.S. currency and become more expensive for overseas buyers when the greenback gains in value.
In other markets
In China, the CSI 300 acquired 5.40 points, or 0.1%, to 4,166.01
Singapore’s Straits Times Index was worse off by 2.07 points, or 0.1%, to 3,371.41
In Taiwan, the Taiex index hiked 30.96 points, or 0.3%, to 9,005.96
In Korea, the Kospi index recovered 10.31 points, or 0.5%, to 2,083.62
The NZX 50 gained 14.99 points, or 0.3%, to 5,876.91
The ASX 200 Index took on 19.82 points, or 0.4%, to 5,706.72
