BEIJING: Shanghai stocks rose Monday after China’s central bank announced a boost for the slowing Chinese economy. Other Asian markets drifted lower.
The Shanghai Composite rose 0.9 percent to 4,326.05 and Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.1 percent at 19,671.28. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng shed 0.3 percent to 27,565.80 and South Korea’s Kospi dropped 0.1 percent to 9,551.19. Markets in Taiwan, Australia and Southeast Asia were lower.
China’s central bank on Sunday cut the required reserve ratio for banks by 1 percentage point to stimulate lending into a slowing economy. The lower reserve requirement allows banks to lend out a higher proportion of their deposits. The Communist Party-run People’s Daily said the cut will release 1.2 trillion yuan ($194 billion) into the world’s second-biggest economy. The move boosted stock markets which have been buoyed in recent days by expectations that Beijing would unleash more stimulus measures to accomplish its annual growth target.
Cuts in China’s reserve ratio were expected throughout 2015 but “the size and timing of this cut indicates leaders are more deeply concerned about the state of the economy then official comments previously indicated,” said Brian Jackson, China Economist at IHS Global Insight.
U.S. stock markets closed lower Friday amid worries about a possible Greek debt default and disappointing earnings. The Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 1.1 percent to 2,081.18. The Nasdaq composite fell 1.5 percent to 4,931.81. The Dow finished 1.5 percent lower at 17,826.30.
Benchmark U.S. crude added 75 cents to $56.50 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 97 cents to close at $55.74 a barrel in New York on Friday. Brent crude rose 77 cents to $64.22 a barrel in London
