Asian Shares Mixed In Cautious Trade; Kospi Hits Fresh Record

(RTTNews) - Asian stocks ended mixed on Monday as strong gains in AI-related stocks in Seoul offset investor concerns over escalating Iran-U.S. tensions and prolonged disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has rejected a U.S. proposal for renewed peace talks, calling it "surrender" and insisting instead on war reparations, full Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, sanctions relief, and the release of seized assets.

The response also called on the U.S. to end its naval blockade and guarantee no further attacks.

U.S. President rejected Iran's counterproposal to end the 10-week war, calling it "totally unacceptable" and reviving fears of a deeper Middle East conflict.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Neanyahu said that Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium must be "taken out" before the conflict with Iran can be considered over.

The dollar was up for a second day running in Asian trading and Brent crude futures rose toward $105 a barrel, while gold dipped below $4,700 an ounce on worries about oil-driven inflation.

China's Shanghai Composite index surged 1.08 percent to 4,225.02 as inflation data topped estimates.

Data showed earlier in the day that China's consumer inflation continued a mild recovery in April while producer inflation surged to a 45-month high.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index finished marginally higher at 26,406.84, erasing early losses.

Japanese markets ended a choppy session lower after authorities intervened to support the local currency.

Ahead of President Donald Trump's summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he will visit Japan for talks with Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae and Finance Minister Katayama Satsuki on Tuesday.

The Nikkei average ended down 0.47 percent at 62,417.88, pulling back after briefly touching an intraday record high of 63,385. The broader Topix index settled 0.30 percent higher at 3,840.93.

Tech stocks came under selling pressure, with Advantest tumbling 3.7 percent and SoftBank Group plunging 6.3 percent.

Seoul stocks ended at a new record high as memory chip-manufacturers soared on expectations stemming from the ongoing AI hardware super-cycle.

The Kospi average surged 4.32 percent to 7,822.24, with Samsung Electronics rising 6.3 percent and SK Hynix rallying 11.5 percent.

Australian stocks ended lower, dragged down by banks and healthcare firms. CSL slumped 16 percent after the biotechnology company cut its full-year outlook and flagged increased asset impairments.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.49 percent to 8,701.80 while the broader All Ordinaries index ended down 0.42 percent at 8,942.40.

Across the Tasman, New Zealand's benchmark S&P/NZX-50 index inched up by 0.27 percent to close at 13,210.48.

U.S. stocks advanced on Friday on the back of upbeat jobs data and strength in Nvidia, SanDisk and other AI-related stocks.

Data showed non-farm payroll employment shot up by 115,000 jobs in April, while analysts had expected an increase of 63,000 jobs.

The unemployment rate held steady at 4.3 percent, reinforcing expectations the Federal Reserve would leave interest rates unchanged for some time.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite surged 1.7 percent and the S&P 500 advanced 0.8 percent to notch record closing highs while the narrower Dow finished marginally higher.