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Asian stocks ended mostly higher on Monday as weaker than expected U.S. job growth in April eased concerns over prospects of higher interest rates. <\/p>\n
Chinese shares eked out modest gains, with healthcare firms climbing after European Union leaders cranked up their criticism of the United States call to waive COVID-19 vaccine patents. <\/p>\n
The benchmark Shanghai Composite index rose 9.12 points, or 0.27 percent, to 3,427.99, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended marginally lower at 28,595.66.<\/p>\n
Japanese shares advanced as investors awaited earnings from prominent firms for signs of progress in a pandemic-hit economy<\/span>. The Nikkei average gained 160.52 points, or 0.55 percent, at 29,518.34, while the broader Topix index ended 0.99 percent higher at 1,952.27.<\/p>\n Toyota Motor climbed 1.7 percent, Honda Motor jumped 2.1 percent and Nissan Motor surged 4.4 percent ahead of their earnings results due this week. <\/p>\n Heavyweight SoftBank Group, which is scheduled to report results on Wednesday, rose 1.7 percent. Steelmakers Nippon Steel, Daido Steel and JFE Holdings jumped 5-7 percent.<\/p>\n Australian markets<\/span> advanced, with higher commodity prices and encouraging data on retail sales and business<\/span> conditions helping underpin sentiment. <\/p>\n The benchmark S&P\/ASX 200 rallied 92 points, or 1.30 percent, to 7,172.80 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended up 94.60 points, or 1.29 percent, at 7,419.80.<\/p>\n BHP, Rio Tinto, OZ Minerals and Fortescue Metals Group jumped 3-8 percent after iron ore and copper prices hit record highs on Friday. Casino giant Crown Resorts soared 7.3 percent and rival Star Entertainment climbed 7.7 percent after confirming a $12 billion merger proposal between the two.<\/p>\n Explosives and fertilizer maker Incitec Pivot plunged 8.9 percent after a further update on the Waggaman ammonia plant. Lender ANZ dropped 1.3 percent on going ex-dividend.<\/p>\n Seoul stocks hit a record high as a disappointing U.S. jobs report helped allay fears about higher inflation, interest rates and a cutback in stimulus. The benchmark Kospi inched up 52.10 points, or 1.63 percent, to 3,249.30.<\/p>\n New Zealand shares ended lower as A2 Milk Company downgraded its FY 2021 guidance once again after a weaker-than-expected performance in the Chinese market and a writedown of up to $90 million in the value of its inventory. The benchmark NZX-50 index slid 70.91 points, or 0.56 percent, to 12,659.01 while A2 Milk shares plummeted as much as 12.8 percent. <\/p>\n U.S. stocks rose on Friday as a surprisingly weak jobs report helped increase bets that the Fed will not pull back on its easy money policies anytime soon.<\/p>\n Data showed non-farm payroll employment rose by 266,000 jobs in April after surging by a downwardly revised 770,000 jobs in March. The jobless rate inched up to 6.1 percent from 6.0 percent in March.<\/p>\n The Dow and the S&P 500 both climbed around 0.7 percent to reach new record closing highs, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 0.9 percent. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Business News<\/p>\n<\/div>\n