WASHINGTON: Asian shares were mixed on Monday after Donald Trump took office as US president and promised “American first” policies, adding to concerns about the threat of protectionism. Japanese stocks tumbled while Chinese markets gained. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.9 per cent to 9,412.54 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng added 0.7 per cent to 23,051.68. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.1 per cent to 18,924.87 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 lost 0.6 per cent to 5,623.20. Seoul’s Kospi added 0.1 per cent to 2,067.59 and Taiwan and Singapore also gained. Jakarta and New Zealand fell. In US stock markets, major stock indexes pulled back slightly on Friday. The Dow rose 94.85 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 19,827.25. The S&P 500 index gained 7.62 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 2,271.31. The Nasdaq composite index added 15.25 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 5,555.33. Despite Friday’s gains, the three major stock indexes ended the week lower.
Benchmark US crude gained 9 cents to $53.31 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Friday, the contract jumped $1.10 to close at $53.22. Brent crude, used to price international oils, advanced 12 cents to $55.61 in London. It soared $1.33 the previous session to close at $55.49. The dollar declined to 113.62 yen from Friday’s 114.53. The euro gained to $1.0743 from $1.0702, according to AP.
