BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares began the week mixed, with Tokyo’s benchmark falling nearly 2% on Monday after the release of data showing weak factory activity, while U.S. futures fell.
Oil prices surged more than $1 a barrel.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 declined 1.9% to 49,285.66 after the government reported weaker than expected corporate investment data.
Regional reports on manufacturing activity are being closely watched for signs of how U.S. President Donald Trump’s higher tariffs are affecting Asian economies.
A survey of Japanese factory managers showed activity slowing in November. The S&P Global Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers index, or PMI, was at 48.7 last month, a slight improvement from 48.2 in October but still in contractionary territory on a scale of zero to 100 where 50 marks the cutoff for expansion. It was the fifth straight month of contraction.
“The latest PMI data showed that Japan’s manufacturing sector continued to struggle with weak demand conditions in November, with firms signaling another solid decline in overall new business,” Annabel Fiddes, economics associate director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said in a report.
China’s factory activity contracted for the eighth straight month in November, according to an official survey released Sunday, underscoring challenges for the country’s economy despite an extension of the trade truce between the U.S. and China.
But Hong Kong’s Hang Seng climbed 0.8% to 26,068.05,
Big online food delivery company Meituan’s shares fell 1.5% after the company reported it fell to a net loss in the last quarter as intense competition in the delivery industry pushed prices lower, even as the company’s revenues rose.
The Shanghai Composite index gained 0.4% to 3,904.90.
In Seoul, the Kospi was nearly unchanged at 3,926.20. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined 0.3% to 8,583.30.
Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.5% and the Sensex in India was up 0.3%.
Across Asia, PMI readings reflected weak factory activity for November, though exports from the region have been rebounding in recent months, Shivaan Tandon, Asia economist for Capital Economics, said in a commentary.
Consumer spending on the Black Friday and Cyber Monday retailing bonanza was expected to exceed expectations, despite uncertainty over the outlook for the U.S. economy.
Early Monday, the future for the S&P 500 was down nearly 0.7% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.4%.
Trading was halted for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq for hours on Friday due to a technical issue at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The CME said the problem was tied to an outage at a CyrusOne data center.
During Friday’s abbreviated post Thanksgiving session, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% and the Dow gained 0.6%. The Nasdaq gained 0.7%.
Stocks rallied last week on hopes for another Federal Reserve rate cut after swooning in mid-November as investors fretted over the durability of the frenzy around artificial intelligence.
Nvidia lost 1.8% Friday, ending the month with a double-digit loss. Oracle fell 23% in November while Palantir Technologies sank 16%.
Some tech stocks did notch monthly gains, most notably Alphabet, which rose nearly 14%, due to excitement about its recently released Gemini AI model.
The central bank, which has already cut rates twice this year in hopes of shoring up the slowing job market, is facing an increasingly difficult decision on interest rates as inflation rises and the job market slows. Cutting interest rates further could help support the economy as employment weakens, but it could also fuel inflation.
The minutes of the Fed’s most recent meeting in October indicated there are likely to be strong divisions among policymakers about the Fed’s next step.
Investors also had their eye on retail stocks as they waited to see if shoppers rushed to take advantage of the annual Black Friday sales event. Macy’s fell 0.3% while Kohl’s gained 1.4%. Dick’s Sporting Goods dropped 0.5%. Among specialty retailers, Abercrombie & Fitch rose 2.9% and American Eagle Outfitters gained 0.7%.
In other trading early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained $1.05 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, also added $1.05 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar fell to 155.57 Japanese yen from 156.14 yen. The euro rose to $1.1602 from $1.1596.
Bitcoin dropped 5.3% to $86,225.
