China, Hong Kong stocks climb, leading gains in Asia

Asia markets climbed Monday, led by China and Hong Kong stocks, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled that the central bank could begin easing monetary policy next month in his widely anticipated annual speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Mainland China’s CSI 300 extended its gains for the fourth consecutive session, climbing 2.08% to end the day at 4,469.22 after hitting a 37-month high earlier in the day.

“A popular view is that maturing time deposits could shift into equities and sustain the momentum, given deposit rates have declined notably,” analysts at Goldman Sachs wrote in a Sunday note. “Some also see potential inflows if Fed rate cuts trigger capital rotation from the US to China, and note bond-to-equity rotation as a key driver of recent equity market gains.”

Chinese property stocks listed in Hong Kong rallied after Shanghai eased homebuying rules for eligible families, with China Vanke paring earlier gains to 9.86%, despite reporting a wider first-half net loss of 12 billion yuan ($1.67 billion), compared with 9.9 billion yuan a year earlier. Longfor Group gained 5.22% and New World Development climbed 5.1%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged 1.94% to 25,829.91, after coming within range of a four-year high. Gains were led by Zijin Mining Group, which gained 6.38% and NetEase, which jumped 6.04%.

The tech sector was among the key contributors to the HSI’s gains. The Hang Seng Tech index rose 3.14% to 5,825.09, with strong moves seen in Nio, which gained 15.17% and semiconductor and electronics manufacturer ASMPT, which added 7.6%.

Strong gains were also seen in Taiwan’s Taiex index, which advanced 2.16% to 24,277.38.

Over in South Korea, the Kospi index increased by 1.3% to end the day at 3,209.86, while the small-cap Kosdaq advanced 1.98% to 798.02.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 benchmark rose 0.41% to close at 42,807.82, while the broader Topix index ticked up 0.15% to 3,105.49.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 benchmark ended flat at 8,972.40, after crossing the 9,000 threshold earlier in the session.

Over in India, the benchmark Nifty 50 added 0.53%, while the BSE Sensex index moved up 0.51% as of 1:50 p.m. Indian Standard Time (4:20 a.m. ET).

Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific, Singapore’s inflation came in at 0.6% in July, lower than the 0.7% forecast by economists polled by Reuters and 0.8% seen in June.

U.S. equity futures traded close to the flatline as investors await artificial intelligence darling Nvidia‘s earnings.

Last Friday, the blue-chip Dow soared 846.24 points, or 1.89%, to a record level of 45,631.74.

Meanwhile, the broad market S&P 500 rose 1.52% to 6,466.91, while its session high was just three points shy of its record. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite gained 1.88%, ending the session at 21,496.53.

— CNBC’s Tanaya Macheel contributed to this report.