- Oracle to invest $6.5 bn in Malaysian cloud services region
- Parkrun marks 20 years of a free weekly jog, run... or walk
- Oil extends rally after Iran attack, Hong Kong soars again
- Prostitutes, prospectors drive spread in DR Congo mpox capital
- Oil extends rally after Iran attack, Hong Kong resumes surge
- Extreme heat another form of death sentence in Texas jails
- Can music help plants grow? Study suggests sound boosts fungus
- Nike earnings drop, says turnaround will take time
- US dockworkers launch mass strike a month before election
- Iron Dome: Israel's key anti-missile shield
- Cranes stand still as US dockworkers fight for 'future'
- GM reports US sales dip, but says EVs grew
- Sheinbaum takes office as Mexico's first woman president
- Webb telescope detects carbon dioxide on Pluto's largest moon
- Stock markets slump, oil jumps on Middle East concerns
- French PM vows more taxes and spending cuts ahead of budget fight
- Germany inaugurates IBM's first European quantum data centre
- Stock markets diverge as eurozone inflation drops further
- France's richest man takes control of Paris Match magazine
- Anger meets tear gas as Nigeria hardship protests fizzle out
- US dockworkers launch mass strike month before election
- Evacuations from Lebanon: what we know
- Feathers fly at Chanel's Paris fashion return
- UAE oil giant ADNOC swoops on German chemicals firm Covestro
- Eurozone inflation falls under 2% for first time since 2021
- Coldplay ticket scalping fiasco sparks backlash in India
- Droughts drive Spanish boom in pistachio farming
- Tokyo recovers some losses to lead Asian markets higher
- Rural schools empty in North Macedonia due to exodus
- US dockworkers launch strike after labor contract expires
- Thousands evacuated as Super Typhoon Krathon approaches Taiwan
- Kenya airport whistleblower fears for his life
- Sheinbaum to take office as Mexico's first woman president
- Scientists fear underfunded Argentina research on verge of collapse
- US port officials gird for strike despite last-minute bargaining
- With 118 dead from Hurricane Helene, Biden defends US government response
- Breeder who tried to create enormous trophy sheep jailed in US
- Qatar Airways seeking 25% stake in Virgin Australia
- US port officials gird for strike as labor talks stay stuck
- As toll crosses 100, Trump puts Hurricane Helene at election center stage
- US Fed Chair sees 'further disinflation' in economy
- Epic Games sues Google and Samsung over app store
- Officials see no shortages from likely US port strike
- UK families of Gaza hostages warn Lebanon attack 'takes focus away'
- Shares in Stellantis, Aston Martin skid on profit warnings
- Dali prints found in London garage sold at auction
- ECB chief backs bank mergers amid UniCredit, Commerzbank talk
- China stocks soar on stimulus, but US and Europe retreat
- 100 dead in storm Helene damage, flooding across US southeast
- China stocks soar on stimulus, Europe slides on automaker woes
Asian markets mixed as inflation fears weigh
Asian stocks were mixed Monday as inflation fears and concerns about low economic growth weighed on markets.
Investors will be looking to the release on Wednesday of notes from the latest Federal Reserve committee meeting for clues on further rate hikes by the US central bank.
Wall Street ended the week essentially flat after the S&P 500 had briefly dipped into a bear market, with the index down about 19 percent from its January high.
A Chinese interest rate cut did little to cheer Asian markets, with investors concerned about continuing Covid restrictions that are hurting the world's second-largest economy and snarling international supply chains.
Downcast earning reports from retailers have also heightened market uncertainty at a time of rising interest rates, surging energy prices and Russia's ongoing war on Ukraine, which is driving commodity prices higher.
"As macro-economic concerns stemming from aggressive monetary tightening, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and China's stringent Covid lockdowns persist, we anticipate great volatility in the market," Louise Dudley, portfolio manager global equities at Federated Hermes, said in a note, Bloomberg News reported.
In Asian trade Monday, Tokyo climbed 1.3 percent while Hong Kong slipped 1.5 percent and Shanghai was down 0.5 percent.
Seoul, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok were higher while Singapore and Manila were down and Sydney was flat following a weekend election that saw the centre-left Labor party end a decade of conservative rule.
The new government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to undertake some policy shifts, particularly on climate change, but economists said they were unlikely to upset growth forecasts.
"In our view there was little proposed by the incoming government during the election campaign that at this stage requires us to revisit our economic forecasts," Commonwealth Bank of Australia economists said in a note.
"Put another way, our economic forecasts and call on the (Australian central bank) are unchanged despite the change of national leadership."
Oil was higher, with US crude benchmark WTI up 0.5 percent and Brent gaining 0.7 percent.
The invasion of Ukraine has shaken up the global market and the outlook for key producer Russia, which has been largely shunned by Western countries.
- Key figures at around 0300 GMT -
Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.3 percent at 26,872.01 (break)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 20,416.04
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.5 percent at 3,131.23
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 127.30 from 127.86 yen on Friday
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0592 from $1.0564
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2543 from $1.2497
Euro/pound: DOWN at 84.45 from 84.50 pence
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.5 percent at $110.81 per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.7 percent at $113.29 per barrel
New York - Dow: FLAT at 31,261.90 (close)
London - FTSE 100: UP 1.2 percent at 7,389.98 (close)
U.Ndiaye--CPN