Stocks in Japan on Tuesday jumped to a 22-month high as the yen fell, though other Asia-Pacific markets were relatively quiet following a global rally Monday that pushed some indexes in the U.S. and Europe to fresh highs.
The Nikkei 225 leaped 162.66 points, or 0.8%, to 20,230.41
The Hang Seng Index slumped 81.51 points, or 0.3%, to 25,843.04
The Nikkei achieved the highest since August 2015 as the yen was broadly weaker. The U.S. dollar remained around ¥111.65
U.S. tech heavyweights, which went through a rough patch earlier this month, rebounded on Monday. Apple rose 2.9% after sliding in six of the prior seven sessions.
Taiwan, which is home to a number of Apple suppliers, saw its benchmark index rise. iPhone maker Hon Hai rose 4.6% to hit another record. On Monday, the Taiex recorded its highest closing level since 1990.
Australian stocks ended lower Tuesday, as the country’s big banks, which make up about a quarter of the benchmark’s weighting, fell nearly 1% after Moody’s late Monday downgraded 12 Australian banks due to worries about heavy household borrowings in real estate.
CHINA
The CSI 300 dipped 7.18 points, or 0.2%, to 3,546.49
After the close of U.S. stock trading, MSCI will say whether it will include some stocks traded in mainland China in its widely followed emerging-markets index. Analysts say sentiment would be lifted in Hong Kong and on the mainland if MSCI decided to include these Chinese stocks.
In other markets
In Taiwan, the Taiex index gained 73.86 points, or 0.7%, to 10,324.46
In Korea, the Kospi index doffed 1.67 points, or 0.1%, to 2,369.23
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index docked 16.76 points, or 0.5%, to 3,230.42
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 slid 5.5 points, or 0.1%, to 7,586.53
In Australia, the ASX 200 dropped 47.92 points, or 0.8%, to 5,757.25
