Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Monday after a week that saw a broad rally in stocks, as investors awaited a slew of central bank releases and inflation data this week.
The Bank of Korea will release its rate decision on Thursday, while inflation data from Japan and Singapore will be released on Friday. China will announce its one- and five-year loan prime rates on Tuesday.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.94%, while the broad-based Topix fell 0.75%. Both indexes are on pace to snap a five-day winning streak.
Core machinery orders in Japan fell 1.7% year on year in June, surprising economists who had expected a 1.8% rise. Machinery orders are viewed as a proxy for capital expenditure in the country.
Separately, Reuters reported that both Japan’s national and Tokyo governments are seeking a 700 billion yen ($4.7 billion) valuation for subway operator Tokyo Metro.
Citing sources, Reuters said the country plans to list the subway operator as early as end-October.
Half of the company’s shares are planned to be sold in its initial public offering, which means the 350 billion yen IPO would be Japan’s biggest IPO since 2018.
South Korea’s Kospi was 0.27% lower, and the small-cap Kosdaq slid 0.44%.
On the other hand, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose over 1.14%, while the CSI 300 was up 0.41%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 inched up 0.17%
On Friday in the U.S., the S&P 500 added 0.2%, the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.21% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 96 points, or 0.24%, rounding off a week of gains.
