On Monday, Asian shares rose, following last week's Wall Street gains. Investors viewed President-elect Donald Trump's nomination of billionaire investor Scott Bessent for Treasury secretary as market-friendly. Bitcoin and oil prices fell slightly, while U.S. futures advanced.
Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index increased by 1.4 to 38,815.31, and Seoul's Kospi rose by 1.4 to 2,535.03. Australia's SampP/ASX 200 gained 0.6 to 8,444.40. In contrast, China's Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.4 to 3,255.39, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.5 to 19,131.82. China's central bank kept the one-year medium-term lending facility rate at 2.
Technology shares saw significant declines, with Meituan falling 4.3 and Tencent dropping 1.3. Taiwan's Taiex added 0.4, and India's Sensex rose 1.5. Bangkok's SET gained 0.2.
This week, updates on consumer sentiment from The Conference Board are expected on Tuesday, and key inflation data from the personal consumption expenditures index for October will be released on Wednesday. This will be the last PCE reading before the Federal Reserve's meeting next month.
On Friday, Wall Street saw its fifth consecutive gain, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average reaching a record high of 44,296.51, up 1. The SampP 500 rose 0.3 to 5,969.34, and the Nasdaq composite increased by 0.2 to 19,003.65. The Russell 2000 index rose 1.8.
Markets have been volatile since the U.S. elections in November, influenced by Trump's appointments to key economic positions. Bessent, 62, a hedge fund manager and founder of Key Square Capital Management, is seen as closely aligned with Wall Street. If confirmed, he would be the first openly gay Treasury secretary.
