International
Oil, China Economic Reports Damp Asian Stock Markets
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.
Hang SengNikkei 225Shanghai Composite