TOKYO: Asian shares mostly gained Tuesday after China promoted an array of infrastructure projects as open to private investment and said it was slashing tariffs on imported clothing and other consumer goods. Investors lacked other cues, with markets in London and the U.S. closed for holidays on Monday.Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock index was nearly flat at 20,416.25 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 1.5 percent to 28,407.72. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.0 percent to 4,861.86; the index is up 140 percent over the past year. Australia’s S&P ASX/200 climbed 0.8 percent to 5,765.10, but South Korea’s Kospi slipped 0.2 percent to 2,141.82. Shares in New Zealand rose and Southeast Asian shares were mixed.
China’s economic planning agency announced Monday that it wanted to attract private investment to more than 1,000 local public-private projects for ports and other transport facilities, the environment, and public services. Altogether, the projects could be worth 2 trillion yuan ($318 billion). The government also announced it would halve import taxes on clothing, cosmetics and some other goods by half in a new tactic to spur consumer spending and economic growth.
