Asia-Pacific stock indices are rising in trading on Monday.
Investors continue to monitor the quarterly earnings season and evaluate fresh statistics from China.
China’s Shanghai Composite index was up 0.4 percent by 8:20 a.m. Hong Kong Hang Seng added 3.6%.
Traders remained optimistic amid unconfirmed reports last week that Chinese authorities may start loosening covid restrictions and abandon its zero-tolerance COVID-19 policy in March. However, Beijing made clear over the weekend that it is still committed to a tough fight against the coronavirus, Trading Economics wrote.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs experts think that the optimism of market participants may persist for 2 to 3 months and the market itself may grow by 20% due to this.
Shares of semiconductor maker Hua Hong Semiconductor Ltd. jumped 16%. The company plans to list on the Shanghai Stock Exchange and may raise up to $2.5 billion.
On the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, shares of developer Country Garden Holdings Co. Ltd. (+13.4%), optical device maker Sunny Optical Technology Group Co. Ltd. (+8.4%) and biopharmaceutical Wuxi Biologics (Cayman) Inc. (+7.7%).
China’s exports in October fell 0.3% year on year to $298.37 billion, according to the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China. Analysts polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 4% increase. It added 5.7% in September.
Imports fell 0.7% year on year to $213.17 billion in October after rebounding 0.3% in September. Economists had expected the figure to be unchanged last month. China’s foreign trade surplus reached $85.2 billion in October, compared with $84.7 billion a month earlier and $84.8 billion a year earlier. Experts estimated the October surplus at $95.8 billion.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 1.2% by 8:35 a.m.
Shares of toy maker Sanrio Co. that owns the Hello Kitty brand are up 13%. The company increased its net profit 1.5 times in the first fiscal year and improved its full-year outlook.
Also among the leaders in the Japanese indicator are securities of JFE Holdings Inc.(+7.5%) investing in the steel business, transport and logistics company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. (+6.6%) and printer maker Konica Minolta Inc. (+5.8%).
Sharp Corp., the Japanese unit of electronics maker Foxconn Technology Group, was down 2.7 percent. The company reported a net loss last quarter and cut its outlook for the year.
South Korea’s Kospi index was up 0.9 percent by 8:45 a.m.
The stock price of Samsung Electronics Co., one of the largest chip and electronics makers in the world, rose 1.2%, the value of Hyundai Motor jumped 4%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index rose 0.6% on Monday.
Share prices of the world’s largest mining companies BHP and Rio Tinto added 5% and 3.8% respectively.
Meanwhile, Coronado Global Resources Inc. shares are down 7% on news that the company terminated merger talks with U.S.-based Peabody Energy Corp.
