FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Oil, China Economic Reports Damp Asian Stock Markets

By

Asian stock markets sagged on Monday, as the Strait of Hormuz remained closed to oil-tanker traffic, and after Beijing released a slate of tempered economic reports.

Brent crude futures traded up 0.9% to $110.29 a barrel during Asian trading hours.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo finished in the red, while other regional exchanges were choppy.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower on Wall Street cues and could not recover, finishing off 0.9% as traders weighed rising petroleum prices, higher domestic inflation, and the outlook for rate hikes from the Bank of Japan.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 593.34 to 60,815.95, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 159 to 62.

Leading the upside was medical device maker Terumo, up 18.6%, while department store chain Marui declined 8.5%, with both moves following earnings releases.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index closed down 1.1% after Beijing issued a slate of downbeat economic reports. Real estate shares were pummeled.

The broad gauge Hang Seng fell 287.55 to 25,675.18, as losing issues outnumbered gainers 77 to 11. The Hang Seng TECH Index lost 2% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index fell 4.7%.

Leading the upside was China Telecom, gaining 6%, while Li Auto declined 14.1%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.1% to 4,131.53.

In economic news, mainland China retail sales in April rose a scant 0.2% on year, reported the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The nation's industrial output rose 4.1% on-year in April, but slowed from the 5.7% gain logged in March, added the NBS.

Fixed-asset investment declined 1.6% on year in the first four months of 2026, while house prices in the 70-city sample slipped 0.19% on-month in April, according to official figures.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI rose 0.3%; the Taiwan TWSE declined 0.7%; the Australian ASX 200 declined 1.5%; the Singapore Straits Times Index rose 0.1%, and the Thai Set was steady. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was up 0.1%

The MSCI All Country Asia Pacific Index fell 0.7% on the day.

Related Articles

International

China's Real Estate Development Investment Falls 14% in January-April Period

Chinese investments in real estate development fell 13.7% year on year to 2.397 trillion yuan between January and April, according to the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday.Among these were residential investments, which dropped 13.1% to 1.846 trillion yuan from a year earlier.Funds available to real estate development enterprises fell 18.4% year on year to 2.670 trillion yuan.The total construction area declined 12.1% to 545.1 million square meters, while the completed construction area fell 24% to 118.9 million square meters.Meanwhile, the sales area of newly built commercial housing slipped 10.2% to 252.6 million square meters from a year earlier.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE
International

China's Unemployment Rate Eases in April

China's unemployment rate in April eased to 5.2% from 5.4% in March, according to the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday.The unemployment rate in 31 major cities slipped to 5.2% from 5.3% in the previous month, with the weekly working hours averaged at 48 hours.The unemployment rate for the local labor force was 5.3%, and for the migrant workers and migrant agricultural workers at 5% each.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE
International

China's Fixed Asset Investment Drops 1.6% in April, Reversing Q1 Growth

China's fixed asset investment dropped 1.6% year on year to 14.1 trillion yuan between January and April, excluding rural households, according to Monday data from the National Bureau of Statistics.The latest print was in line with market expectations and reversed a 1.7% rise in the first quarter.Industrial investment rose 2.5% in the January-April period, with mining investment recording the biggest increase with a 11.1% jump from a year earlier.Meanwhile, infrastructure investment during the month climbed 4.3%, with water transport investment jumping the highest with a 28.4% climb, followed by air transport investment, which rose 27.3%.The country's private fixed asset investment between January and April declined 5.2% year on year.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE