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Asian stocks ended mixed on Monday as the conflict in the Middle East continued, and investors looked for cues from a slew of central bank meetings due this week. <\/p>\n
The U.S. Federal Reserve, Bank of England and Bank of Japan are set to hold their monetary policy meetings this week, with economists expecting a status quo policy from the U.S. central bank and the U.K. central bank. <\/p>\n
Analysts expect the Bank of Japan to potentially further tweak its yield curve control (YCC) policy when it meets on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Israeli troops have entered the Gaza Strip for the first time in nearly two decades, but it’s unclear whether the maneuvers mark the official start of an invasion.<\/p>\n
The dollar held steady in cautious trade ahead of global manufacturing data due this week. <\/p>\n
Gold consolidated near multi-month highs above the key $2,000 per level while crude prices fell more than 1 percent in Asian trade on easing Middle East worries. <\/p>\n
Chinese shares recovered from an early slide to close slightly higher, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite index edging up 0.12 percent to 3,021.55. <\/p>\n
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended marginally higher at 17,406.36. <\/p>\n
China Evergrande Group shares plunged nearly 10 percent after Hong Kong’s High Court gave the embattled property developer a five-week reprieve to come up deal with creditors or face liquidation.<\/p>\n
Japanese shares fell sharply as a two-day policy meeting of the BOJ got underway. The Nikkei average fell 0.95 percent to 30,696.96 while the broader Topix index closed 1.04 percent lower at 2,231.24.<\/p>\n
Automakers led losses, with Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors falling 2-4 percent. Healthcare equipment maker Omron lost 15.8 percent after slashing its annual profit forecast.<\/p>\n
Seoul stocks reversed course to send modestly higher, with the Kospi average closing up 0.34 percent at 2,310.55.<\/p>\n
Australian markets<\/span> fell notably on concerns that the Israel-Hamas war could spill over across the Middle East. Also, upbeat retail sales data strengthened expectations the Reserve Bank will hike rates when it meets on November 7.<\/p>\n The benchmark S&P\/ASX 200 fell 0.79 percent to 6,772.90, marking its lowest level in more than 12 months. The broader All Ordinaries index dropped 0.77 percent to 6,960.20.<\/p>\n Across the Tasman, New Zealand’s benchmark S&P\/NZX-50 index finished 0.23 percent lower at 10,741.57.<\/p>\n U.S. stocks ended mixed on Friday but notched weekly losses on fears of a recession and interest rates staying higher for longer. <\/p>\n The Dow fell 1.1 percent to hit a seven-month low and the S&P 500 dropped half a percent to reach a five-month closing low after data showed both inflation and consumer spending rose in September. <\/p>\n The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.4 percent after Amazon trounced analysts’ expectations for Q3 revenue and earnings. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Business News<\/p>\n<\/div>\n