Asian shares rise to seven-month highs as positive Chinese and U.S factory activity surveys aided investor confidence, and the ebbing concerns over the global economy spurred selling of safe-haven U.S. bonds as yields rose from 15 month troughs.
Asian Shares
- MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.2 percent.
- Australian shares gained half a percent.
- Japan’s Nikkei advanced 0.3 percent, extending its gains for a third session.
- The Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.1 percent.
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was flat.
Currency
The British parliament failed on Monday to find a majority for any proposed alternative to Prime Minister Theresa May’s divorce deal, though support for an alternative that included a customs union was far higher than for May’s deal.
“The only sensible thing for Theresa May to do is to step aside and let someone else take control of Brexit,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets in London, said in a note to clients.
- Sterling was last down 0.3 percent at $1.3065.
- The euro struggled near a three-week low of $1.1198.
- Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was down a tad at 111.31 yen.
Commodities
- U.S. crude futures traded at $61.79 per barrel, up 0.3 percent on the day.
- Brent futures were also up 0.2 percent at $69.15 a barrel.
- Gold inched up to $1,287.60.
