A Chinese flag flies high over The Bund.
Liu Liqun | Corbis Documentary | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Monday as China's central bank held rates at a time when the yuan has come under pressure due to Beijing-Washington trade tensions.
Mainland China's CSI 300 rose 0.33% in its last hour of trade to end the day at 3,784.88, after the People's Bank of China kept its key loan prime rates unchanged at 3.10% for 1-year loan maturities and 3.60% for 5-year loan maturities, in line with the expectations of economists polled by Reuters.
India's benchmark Nifty 50 advanced 1.32% while the broader BSE Sensex added 1.35% as of 1.25 p.m. Indian Standard time.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 ended the day 1.30% lower at 34,279.92, while the broader Topix index declined 1.18% to 2,528.93.
In South Korea, the Kospi index moved up 0.2% in choppy trade to close at 2,488.42 while the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.32% to 715.45.
Australian and Hong Kong markets were closed for the Easter holiday.
— CNBC's Sean Conlon contributed to this report.
Shares of India's ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank hit record high after 4Q2025 results
Singapore's benchmark STI rises nearly 1.3% to over 2-week high
STI movement
The moves in Singapore's stocks come alongside strong gains in its currency.
The Singapore dollar appreciated 0.53% against the greenback to 1.3040, shortly after hitting its highest level since October 2024.
— Amala Balakrishner
Chinese yuan appreciates against dollar after PBOC holds loan prime rate
The Chinese yuan appreciated Monday, following the central bank's decision to stand pat on interest rates.
As at 10.33 a.m. local time, the Chinese yuan had strengthened 0.13% against the U.S. dollar to 7.2897.
Meanwhile, the offshore Chinese yuan had strengthened 0.14% against the greenback to 7.2915.
— Amala Balakrishner
Asian chip-related stocks trade mixed
Semiconductor-related stocks in Asia continued to trade mixed Monday following the tech sell-off in Wall Street last week.
Shares of Taiwanese chipmakers Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp fell 1.41% while Hon Hai Precision Industry - which is known internationally as Foxconn - moved up 0.37%.
Over in South Korea, shares of SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics increased 1.71% and 0.27% respectively.
Meanwhile, shares of semiconductor-related companies in Japan fell, trailing losses of the Nikkei 225 benchmark and Topix index.
Semiconductor testing equipment supplier Advantest's shares lost 0.69%, while technology conglomerate SoftBank - which owns a stake in chip designer Arm - moved down 1%.
Meanwhile, shares of Renesas Electronics tumbled 2.59%.
— Amala Balakrishner
Shares of major Chinese banks pick up after PBOC holds key loan prime rate
Shares of China's major banks picked up Monday, after the country's central bank stood pat on its key loan prime rates earlier in the day.
Bank of China led gains in the sector, increasing 1.94% as at 10.11 a.m. local time.
Shares of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China and China Construction Bank were last seen up 1.12% and 0.98% respectively.
Meanwhile, China Merchants Bank was trading 0.61% higher.
— Amala Balakrishner
Japanese stocks fall over 1%
Japanese stocks fell over 1% Monday, reversing course from two-straight sessions of gains.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 was down 1.04% as at 10.52 a.m. local time. The index is down 12.94% since the start of the year.
Nikkei 225
The worst-performing stocks in the index were Sumitomo Pharma which plunged 9.18%, Suzuki Motor which dropped 3.89% and Mazda Motor which was down 3.62%, according to LSEG data.
Meanwhile, the Topix index was down 1.05%. The broad based index has dropped 8.96% since the start of the year.
— Amala Balakrishner
China keeps key lending rates steady in bid to shore up yuan as Trump tariffs pressure currency
China expectedly kept its loan prime rates unchanged Monday, with the 1-year LPR at 3.1% and the 5-year at 3.6% as the central bank appears focused on stabilizing the yuan amid trade tensions with the U.S.
The decision from the People's Bank of China comes as China reported better-than-expected economic data this month, with first-quarter GDP growing at 5.4% year on year.
The 1-year LPR influences corporate and most household loans in China, while the 5-year LPR serves as a benchmark for mortgage rates. The PBOC has kept the LPRs steady since October last year.
Read the full story, here.
— Lim Hui Jie
Japanese and South Korean auto stocks fall in early trade
Japanese and South Korean auto stocks fell in early trade Monday, reversing course from gains in the previous week.
Suzuki Motor led losses in Japanese automakers, plunging 4.19% as at 8.59 a.m. Singapore time.
Other stocks that logged steep increases include Mazda Motor which retreated 3.03%, Toyota Motor which fell 2.30% and Nissan Motor which dropped 1.99%.
Over in South Korea, Kia Corp moved up 0.34% while Hyundai Motor lost 0.11%.
— Amala Balakrishner
Spot gold rises above $3,300 as investors scoop up bullion in market rally
Spot gold rose past the $3,300 threshold Monday as investors sought relief in the safe-haven bullion amid heightened Beijing-Washington trade tensions.
The precious metal hit a record high of $3,368.92 per ounce as at 8.44 a.m. Singapore time.
Spot gold
— Amala Balakrishner
Japanese yen strengthens to 7-month high against the greenback
The Japanese yen appreciated 0.70% against the U.S. dollar to hit a seven-month high of 141.16 as of 9:00 a.m. Singapore time on Monday.
USD/JPY
Elsewhere in Asia-Pacific, the Korean won strengthened 0.31% to 1,421.20 against the U.S. dollar.
Meanwhile, the Australian dollar appreciated by 0.36% against the U.S. dollar to 0.6398, while the offshore Chinese yuan strengthened marginally by 0.1% against the greenback to 7.2953.
Southeast Asian currencies also strengthened against the greenback. The Singapore dollar was last seen 0.4% stronger than the U.S. dollar at 1.305, while the Malaysian ringgit had appreciated 0.45% against the dollar to 4.39.
— Amala Balakrishner
English (US)