Shares in Asia-Pacific were mixed on Monday, with investors monitoring stocks related to embattled developer China Evergrande Group.
Mainland Chinese stocks closed lower, with the Shanghai composite slipping 0.84% to 3,582.83 while the Shenzhen component dipped around 0.1% to 14,344.29.
Shares of China Evergrande New Energy Vehicle Group in Hong Kong plunged 9.42% following the firm’s Friday warning that it was in a “serious shortage of funds.” The company also announced over the weekend that it will not proceed with plans to issue RMB shares.
Evergrande Group shares in Hong Kong, on the other hand, soared 8.05%. The firm has continued to stay silent on a key $83 million dollar bond interest payment that was due last Thursday.
The broader Hang Seng index in Hong Kong closed around 0.1% higher at 24,208.78.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 finished the trading day little changed at 30,240.06 while the Topix index dipped 0.14% to 2,087.74. South Korea’s Kospi closed 0.27% higher at 3,133.64.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia climbed 0.57% to close at 7,384.20 while the MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose around 0.1%
Looking ahead, Chinese industrial profits data for August is expected to be released on Tuesday.
Elsewhere, preliminary results on Monday showed Germany’s Social Democrats taking a narrow win in the race to succeed Angela Merkel, who is preparing to leave office after 16 years in power.
The euro last sat at $1.1692, following an earlier high of $1.1726.
Asian Markets Currencies and Oil
Oil prices were higher in the afternoon of Asia trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures up 1.24% to $79.06 per barrel. U.S. crude futures gained 1.23% to $74.89 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 93.416 following its climb late last week from below 93.2.
The Japanese yen traded at 110.74 per dollar, having weakened last week from below 110 against the greenback. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7263 following its slide late last week from above $0.729.
