Asia Shares Edge Up

Asian shares rose on Monday, taking their cue from gains on Wall Street after strong US job data, though the mood was cautious as oil prices plunged to 3 1/2-month lows on fresh worries of oversupply.

A confluence of major events this week, including an expected interest rate hike by the US Federal Reserve, a potentially divisive election in the Netherlands and a Group of 20 finance ministers’ meeting kept many investors on edge, Reuters reported.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.6%, led by gains in tech-heavy South Korean shares and Taiwanese shares.

China and Hong Kong stocks rebounded on Monday. China’s blue-chip CSI300 index rose 0.6%, to 3,449.57 points by the lunch break, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.4%, to 3,226.41 points.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index rose 0.9% to 23,779.54 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index gained 1.5% to 10,219.80.

Japanese shares recovered from a weak start to close at a 15-month high. The benchmark Nikkei closed up 29.14 points or 0.15% at 19,633.75, led by defensive stocks as the yen edged up a little bit against the dollar ahead of the results of Wednesday’s Dutch elections. The broader Topix index closed 0.22% higher at 1,577.40.

Australian shares fell slightly, dragged down by financials and energy stocks as investors awaited the FOMC decision due on Wednesday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 index dropped 18.30 points or 0.32% at 5,757.30, with ANZ, Commonwealth and NAB closing down less than half a percent each. The broader All Ordinaries index closed 16.60 points or 0.29% lower at 5,794.60.