Asia-Pacific markets rose on Monday as China’s factory activity for July remained in contraction territory for the fourth straight month.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index regained 412.99 points, or 1.3%, to 33,172.23.
The country’s industrial output for June came in lower than expected, registering a 2% growth month on month compared to the 2.4% expected by economists.
In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rocketed 162.38 points, or 0.8%, to 20,078.94. At current levels, this would be the first time that the HSI breached the 20,000 mark in over a month.
Australian markets cleared breakeven as investors prepare for the Reserve Bank of Australia’s rate decision on Tuesday. Economists polled by Reuters were expecting a 25-basis-point hike in its benchmark policy rate to 4.35%.
CHINA
In China, the CSI 300 hiked 21.89 points, or 0.6%, to 4.014.63.
The official manufacturing purchasing managers index came in at 49.3, higher than June’s figure of 49.0, according to the national bureau of statistics.
The PMI for non-manufacturing activity came in at 51.5, a slower rate of expansion compared to the 53.2 in June.
In other markets
In Singapore, the Straits Times Index edged higher 2.81 points, or 0.1%, to 3,373.98.
In Korea, the Kospi Index advanced 24.26 points, or 0.9%, to 2,632.58
In Taiwan, the Taiex index lost 147.5 points, or 0.9%, to 17,145.43.
In New Zealand, the NZX 50 soared 109.42 points, or 0.9%, to 12,056.15.
In Australia, ASX 200 inched up 6.78 points, or 0.1%, to 7,410.42.
