Asia report: Markets mixed, Japan surges on return from holiday

(Sharecast News) - Asia-Pacific markets finished with mixed results on Tuesday, as investors wrestled with the implications of the recent attack on Israel by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Oil prices, which surged on Monday amid concerns of regional instability, were coming off their highs by the end of the Asian session.

"Asian equity markets opened the week on a mostly positive note as markets returned from the long weekend," said TickMill market analyst Patrick Munnelly, referring to the holidays in Japan and Korea on Monday.

"This positive sentiment was influenced by the recovery seen on Wall Street, partly due to dovish-leaning comments from Federal Reserve officials."

Munnelly noted that the Nikkei 225 outperformed.

"It had the chance to react to key market themes, including last week's US jobs data, the Israel-Hamas conflict, and recent Fed rhetoric."

Japan returns from long weekend with a bang, region's bourses otherwise mixed

Japanese markets seemingly shrugged off global concerns, as the Nikkei 225 surged 2.43% to close at 31,746.53 while the Topix jumped 2.12%, closing at 2,312.19.

Among the biggest gainers on Tokyo's benchmark, Inpex, Sojitz, and Itochu saw their share prices soar by 8.58%, 7.92%, and 7.13%, respectively.

China's major indices trended in the opposite direction, with the Shanghai Composite slipping by 0.7% to 3,075.24 and the Shenzhen Component dropping by 0.56% to 10,050.04.

Major setbacks in Shanghai were observed for China Railway Hi-tech Industry and China Communications Construction, plummeting by 9.01% and 8.5% respectively.

The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong closed up 0.84% at 17,664.73.

Notable performers included NetEase, Meituan, and Wharf Real Estate Investment, which climbed a respective 3.37%, 3.12%, and 3.1%.

Meanwhile, South Korea's Kospi nudged down slightly, losing 0.26% to settle at 2,402.58.

Hyosung TNC and Zinus were among the biggest losers in Seoul, declining by 7.93% and 6.82%.

Australian and New Zealand markets in the southern hemisphere showed resilience amidst global tensions.

The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney marked a gain of 1.01%, closing at 7,040.60, with Pilbara Minerals and Origin Energy leading the charge, advancing by 6.17% and 5.5%.

New Zealand's S&P/NZX 50 also enjoyed a positive day, rising by 0.79% to 11,293.38, with Serko and KMD Brands uplifting the index by ascending 4.33% and 3.7%, respectively.

On the currency front, the dollar was last up 0.27% on the yen to trade at JPY 148.91.

The greenback was meanwhile mixed against its downunder counterparts, falling 0.02% against the Aussie to AUD 1.5596, while it advanced 0.05% on the Kiwi to change hands at NZD 1.6613.

Oil markets meanwhile exhibited a minor downtrend, with Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate futures down 0.31% on ICE and 0.29% on NYMEX to $87.88 and $86.13 per barrel, respectively.

Philippines sees shifting trade dynamics in August

In economic news, the Philippine trade sector saw a rebound in August with a 4.2% climb in exports, surmounting the prior month's revised dip of 0.9% and registering the swiftest expansion this year.

Conversely, the import arena documented a 13.1% year-on-year contraction, presenting a milder retreat than July's amended 15.2% narrowing.

Despite the optimistic export dynamics, total external trade for the nation still declined 7.2% year-on-year, landing at $17.53bn for August.

Moreover, the Philippine trade deficit contracted to $4.13bn, diminishing almost a third from its position a year prior.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.