Asian shares edged higher, following a rally in heavyweight Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and gains in Chinese stocks on fresh signs of policy support.
A key gauge of the region’s equities rose 0.2%, aided by Samsung Electronics’ jump after South Korea’s biggest firm announced a surprise stock buyback plan.
Shares in Hong Kong and mainland China also advanced after the country’s securities regulator urged listed companies to boost returns on their stocks.
The brighter mood in Korea and China helped offset weakness in neighboring markets like Japan and Taiwan, where concerns lingered about Donald Trump’s potentially inflationary economic policies and Friday’s upbeat US retail sales data that reduced expectations for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
US stock futures also rose, after the S&P 500 slid 1.3% on Friday to erase more than half of its gains following the US election. “Investors expect Chinese companies will try their best to boost market cap, fund flows into related stocks,” said Kenny Wen, head of investment strategy at KGI Asia Ltd.
