Asian Shares Edge Up In Thin Holiday Trade

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks edged up in thin trade on Monday, with Japanese markets closed for a holiday.

As the August 12 deadline for a deal between the U.S. and China loomed, U.S. President Donald Trump said he hoped China would quadruple its soybean orders from the United States to reduce its trade surplus with the U.S.

In another significant development, chip giants Nvidia and AMD have reportedly agreed to give the U.S. government 15 percent of the revenues from chip sales in China, as part of a deal with the trump administration to secure export licenses.

Investors also looked ahead to a slew of U.S. and Chinese economic data and the Trump-Putin meeting on August 15 in Alaska for directional cues.

The dollar was steady ahead of this week's U.S. July CPI inflation report, which will shape the Federal Reserve's rate trajectory and influence investment strategies across asset classes.

Some economists are cautioning that Trump's sweeping new tariffs on U.S. trade partners increase the risks that the U.S. economy could enter a period of stagflation, characterized by rising prices, slowing growth, and increasing unemployment.

Gold prices fell over 1 percent in Asian trade as investors sought clarity from Washington over tariff rulings on bullion bars. Oil prices declined despite Trump's threats to India and China over Russian oil.

China's Shanghai Composite rose 0.34 percent to 3,647.55, with lithium producers surging after CATL confirmed it has suspended production at a large lithium mine, sending lithium carbonate prices soaring.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished 0.19 percent higher at 24,906.81, recovering from an early slide as crucial earnings results approached and China deflation concerns persisted.

China's factory-gate prices fell more than expected in July, while consumer prices were flat, underscoring the impact of sluggish domestic demand and persistent trade uncertainty on consumer and business sentiment.

Seoul stocks edged down slightly as caution prevailed ahead of U.S. inflation as well as Chinese retail sales and industrial output data due this week.

The Kospi average slipped 0.10 percent to 3,206.77. Samsung Electronics fell 1.1 percent and Hanwha Ocean, the shipbuilding unit of Hanwha Group, plummeted 9.1 percent while SK Hynix surged 4.1 percent.

Australian markets eked out modest gains amid bets the Reserve Bank of Australia will ease policy on Tuesday. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.43 percent to 8,844.80 while the broader All Ordinaries index settled 0.45 percent higher at 9,117.60.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index ended up 0.52 percent at 12,911.86.

U.S. stocks rose on Friday, adding to the week's strong performance, amid easing concerns about tariffs and the economic outlook.

President Trump warned U.S. courts against striking down his tariff policy and said the duties will have a "huge positive impact" on the market.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 1 percent to reach a new record closing high for a second day after Apple committed to invest an additional $100 billion in U.S. manufacturing. The S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent and the Dow added half a percent.