Indian manufacturers in May saw improvement in output, S&P Global said Monday.
The latest seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index stood at 55, compared with 54.7 in April and the consensus estimate of 54.3 from Investing.com.
The reading marked the best improvement in sector health for three months.
Asian stock markets were mixed on the upside Monday as traders weighed Persian Gulf outlooks and prospects for AI- and tech-related shares.Hong Kong and Tokyo finished in the green, while Shanghai edged lower. Other regional exchanges largely gained, including fresh record highs on equity indices in Seoul and Taiwan.In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened evenly and rose to the close, finishing up 0.9% as tech shares gained.The benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 604.83 to 66,934.33, another all-time high, although losing issues outnumbered gainers 154 to 70, as upsides were concentrated in tech issues.Leading gainers was tech financier SoftBank, up 14%, while chemical concern Denka declined 7.3%.In economic news, capital spending in Japan in Q1 was largely unchanged from a year earlier, reported the Ministry of Finance.In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index closed up 0.9% on strength in property and tech issues.The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 215.79 to 25,378.18, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 65 to 24. The Hang Seng TECH Index gained 1.7% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index rose 2.4%.Leading the upside was Laopu Gold, gaining 7.7%, while Innovent Biologics declined 2.9%.On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.3% to 4,057.74.On the other regional exchanges, the South Korean KOSPI rose 3.7%; the Taiwan TWSE advanced 1.3%; the Australian ASX 200 was steady, and in late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.7%. Exchanges in Singapore and Bangkok were closed on holiday.The MSCI All Country Asia Pacific Index rose 0.9% on the day.
The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the euro area stood at 6.3% for the second straight month in April, according to Eurostat data published Monday.The latest reading is higher than the consensus estimate of 6.2%.
Britain's manufacturing activity accelerated in May, with production volumes expanding at the fastest rate in three months amid persistent macroeconomic headwinds, including rising prices and supply chain pressures.The final S&P Global UK Manufacturing PMI stood at 53.9 in May, against the prior month's 53.7, S&P Global said Monday. The reading marks a four-year high and the seventh consecutive month of sector growth.