The Shanghai composite rose 0.33%, the Hang Seng index shed 0.56%, the Nikkei 225 added 0.26% the Topix index advanced 0.5%, the Kospi lost 0.25%, the S&P/ASX 200 was 0.26% higher, while MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.13%
Trading Asia was mixed on Monday as investors in the region react to the approval of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.
Mainland Chinese stocks were higher in afternoon trade: The Shanghai composite gained 0.33% while the Shenzhen component advanced 0.458%. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong, on the other hand, dipped 0.56%.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.26% while the Topix index rose 0.5%.
The Bank of Japan’s quarterly tankan survey showed on Monday business sentiment in Japan improving in the three months to December. The headline index for big manufacturers’ sentiment improved to minus 10 as compared with minus 27 in September. A median market forecast had expected the figure to come in at minus 15, according to Reuters.
In Southeast Asia, Singapore’s Straits Times Index led gains among the region’s major markets as it rose around 1.2%. The country’s prime minister said in a Facebook post Sunday that he will be giving a live address on Monday at 5 p.m. Singapore time on the Covid-19 situation as well as the outlook for next year. The number of Covid-19 cases in the city-state has remained low for the past several weeks, with zero or one new case reported in its daily statistics.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi shed 0.25%. South Korea has been dealing with a recent resurgence in coronavirus infections, with the country reporting its largest daily caseload ever on Sunday, according to local news agency Yonhap.
Meanwhile, shares in Australia edged higher on the day, with the S&P/ASX 200 up 0.26% to 6,660.20.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan declined 0.13%.
