MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
MIAPJ0000PUS rose 0.5% to reach its highest since March 2018, extending a
2.8% gain last week.
Chinese blue chips CSI300 firmed 0.7% to reach levels not seen since
mid-2015. Surveys showed Chinese manufacturing activity edged back a
tick to 51.0 in July, but services jumping a full point to 55.2 in a
hopeful sign of reviving consumer demand. futures for the S&P 500
ESc1 climbed another 0.5%, while EUROSTOXX 50 futures STXEc1 added 1%.
Tokyo's Nikkei N225 rallied 1.9% aided by news Warren Buffett's
Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRKa ) BRKa.N had bought more than 5% stakes
in each of the five leading Japanese trading companies. Nikkei had
dipped on Friday after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's resignation stirred
doubts about future fiscal and monetary stimulus policies.
Those concerns were eased somewhat by news Chief Cabinet Secretary
Yoshihide Suga, and a close ally of Abe, would join the race to succeed
his boss. A slimmed-down leadership contest is likely around Sept. 13 to
15. was now on a host of Federal Reserve officials that are set to
speak this week, kicking off with Vice Chair Richard Clarida later
Monday as they put more flesh on the bank's new policy framework.
