Stock Markets at the Beginning of the Week

On Monday, most of the stocks in Asia increased, and several factors affected the stock markets. Mainland Chinese stocks have a good day as the Shanghai composite rose 0.66% to about 3,095.79.

At the same time, the Shenzhen composite added 1.311% to around 1,289.96. The Shenzhen component added 1.47% to 11,115.88.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 0.6% during the final hour of trading.

Hopefully, both Nikkei 225 and Topix strengthened their positions. The Nikkei 225 added 0.18% to close at 24,083.51. The index heavyweight Fast Retailing declined 1.58%.

The Topix index rose 0.5% to finish its trading day at 1,744.16.

Another stock index from Asia also increased on Monday. South Korea’s Kospi index gained 0.54% to close at 2,264.64. The news about the Samsung Electronics decisions helped to boost the index.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.22% to end its trading day at 7,079.50.

One of the factors that influenced the stocks is the People’s Bank of China. The central bank decided to keep the loan prime rate (LPR) unchanged.

Stocks in Europe and the U.S.

On January 20, European markets fell as policymakers and business leaders meet in Davos. The annual World Economic Forum opened on Monday.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 fell 0.1% during afternoon trade, with household goods declining 0.9%.

The French CAC 40 index fell 0.31% or 18.70 points to 6082.02. Another European index, the UK’s FTSE 100 declined 0.34% or 26.45 points to 7648.11.

However, the German DAX added 0.10% or 13.85 points to 13539.98.

As a reminder, U.S. stocks reached record highs last week. Thanks to positive news regarding the economic data from the U.S. and China.

Stock markets are closed on Monday for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Another important event took place on January 20. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson hosted a summit for African leaders ahead of long-awaited Brexit. The U.K. will leave the European Union by the end of this month.