Stocks in Asia were mostly higher overnight after Japan and China reported data reflecting relatively sluggish growth for the continent’s two largest economies.
The Nikkei (^N225) rose 0.1% on the day in Japan, after a quarterly survey by the Bank of Japan, showed a modest improvement in confidence among the country’s largest manufacturers in the April-June quarter.
However the government downgraded its estimate for growth in the first quarter of the year, to a -2.9% annual rate from the earlier figure of -1.8%
Meanwhile the Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) was 0.9% up by the end of the session after a survey of factory purchasing managers reported over the weekend showed conditions remained in contraction for a second straight month.
The Hang Seng (^HSI) was closed for a holiday.
Elsewhere, the euro rose after the far-right National Rally looked unlikely to be able to form a majority despite making strong gains in first-round of its parliamentary elections.
Polling agencies suggest the National Rally might win a majority in the lower house of the parliamentary, but the outcome is uncertain. The euro rose to nearly 85p from 84.7p.
Charu Chanana, a market strategist for Saxo Capital Markets told Bloomberg:
“We are starting off in Asia with that sense of relief that the far-right parties did not get the kind of majority that was feared.”