Most Asian shares were higher on Monday. It was following the issuance of executive orders by President Donald Trump to provide tax relief. And also, it aims to avoid unemployment benefits for Americans affected by the coronavirus pandemic effect.
Shares rose Monday in Sydney, Shanghai, and Seoul. Meanwhile, in Tokyo, markets do not open for holidays.
“It has been an unusually risk-friendly start to the Monday proceedings. But then, there is still a lot of wood on the U.S. stimulus deal. Meanwhile, Aug. 15 trade talks loom ominously,” Stephen Innes of AxiCorp said in a commentary.
Stock prices fell in Hong Kong after the authorities arrested pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai on suspicion of collusion with foreign powers.
The Hang Seng Index Dropped
The Hang Seng index dropped 0.5% to 24,419.91 in Asian shares.
An aide to Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai says Lai was arrested under the city’s national security law. Hong Kong police said seven people had been arrested on suspicion of violating that law. They did not reveal the names of those arrested.
It has raised questions over whether and to what extent Communist Party leaders in Beijing will respect the “one-party, two-systems” arrangement promised to the former British colony for a half-century after China took control of the semi-autonomous in 1997.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi jumped 0.9% to 2,371.73 and the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia surged 1.2% to 6,078.00. The Shanghai Composite index edged 0.3% higher to 3,361.91.
On holidays, markets in Japan and several other countries do not open.
Overall, China reported its consumer price index rose to 2.7% in July from 2.5% in June as flooding disrupted farming across much of the country. But producer prices and core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, fell to a ten-year low of 0.5%, reflecting continued weakness amid the pandemic.
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