(Bloomberg) — Asian shares edged higher, following a rally in heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and gains in Chinese stocks on fresh signs of policy support.
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A key gauge of the region’s equities rose 0.2%, aided by Samsung Electronics’ jump after South Korea’s biggest firm announced a surprise stock buyback plan. Shares in Hong Kong and mainland China also advanced after the country’s securities regulator urged listed companies to boost returns on their stocks.
The brighter mood in Korea and China helped offset weakness in neighboring markets like Japan and Taiwan, where concerns lingered about Donald Trump’s potentially inflationary economic policies and Friday’s upbeat US retail sales data that reduced expectations for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
US stock futures also rose, after the S&P 500 slid 1.3% on Friday to erase more than half of its gains following the US election.
“Investors expect Chinese companies will try their best to boost market cap, fund flows into related stocks,” said Kenny Wen, head of investment strategy at KGI Asia Ltd. “However, it may only provide short term sentiment support as stock prices eventually are determined by fundamentals.”
The Bloomberg dollar index was steady. The yen slipped after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the timing of the central bank’s next policy adjustment will depend on the economy and prices. The BOJ is scheduled to meet on Dec. 18-19.
In corporate news, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is proposing to sell dollar and yuan bonds to pay back offshore debt and buy back shares, following the Chinese tech conglomerate’s issuance of a record convertible bond offering earlier this year.
As for commodities, oil rebounded after a weekly decline on concerns over plentiful supply and weaker demand from top crude importer China. Gold advanced after suffering its worst weekly drop since 2021, as the dollar eased and traders weighed the outlook for Fed rate cuts.
Elsewhere this week, China’s banks are expected to keep their loan prime rates…
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