Investing.com — Asian stocks were mixed on Monday, with Japanese markets recovering from last week’s deep declines, but Chinese stocks falling amid renewed concerns about the real estate market.
Conditions remained fragile in the face of declining confidence in the early US interest rate cut, and broader Asian markets remained in a narrow range. US stock futures edged higher in Asian trading, with focus shifting to future indicators and .
Global stock markets took a hit last week as expectations for an early interest rate cut in the US faded. Friday’s selloff also demonstrated the continued strength of the U.S. labor market.
Nikkei Stock Average rebounds from weekly sharp decline
Japanese stocks were the best performers on the day, rising 1.6%, while all other stocks rose 1.2%.
Both indexes benefited from market buying, falling between 2.3% and 3.5% after posting their worst weekly losses since December 2022.
Losses in the Japanese market were mainly caused by a rebound in the yen, after the government repeatedly warned that it would intervene in foreign exchange markets to support the currency.
The yen fell on Monday after Japan’s February forecast was in line with expectations. Rising wages are a key consideration in the Bank of Japan’s further hikes, with significant hikes expected in the coming months.
Further interest rate hikes are expected to put a ceiling on Japanese stocks, causing the Nikkei Stock Average to stall at around 40,000 points.
Chinese stocks rebound on concerns about real estate market
On Monday, China’s index and index each fell 0.7% as trade resumed after an extended weekend. The Hong Kong index also fell by about 0.4%.
Losses in the Chinese market were caused by renewed concerns over the real estate sector after defaulting developer Shimao Group received a liquidation request from its major creditors.
Shimao’s liquidation bid adds to the growing list of Chinese developers facing such a scenario. Evergrande Group was recently ordered into liquidation by a Hong Kong court, and beleaguered development company Country Garden was also hit with a liquidation petition.
This has heightened persistent concerns that China’s real estate market slump will be prolonged, threatening the country’s broader economic recovery.
Other Asian markets remained within a narrow range on Monday, after registering slight declines last week. Expectations for further clues regarding US interest rates kept sentiment largely subdued.
Australia rose 0.2% and South Korea rose 0.1%.
India’s index has turned slightly positive after hitting its highest point in the index scale last week.
