Asian shares rise despite weak China data

Asian markets climbed on Monday despite fresh evidence indicating that China’s manufacturing sector is shrinking as Tokyo rebounded from a heavy sell-off in the previous session. The dollar edged up slightly against the yen but investors remain on edge over the Crimea crisis. Tokyo gained 1.77 percent, or 251.07 points, to end at 14,475.30, Sydney rose 0.17 percent, or 8.8 points, to 5,346.9 and Seoul closed 0.55 percent higher, adding 10.61 points to 1,945.55. Shanghai closed up 0.91 percent, or 18.66 points, at 2,066.28 while Hong Kong rallied 1.91 percent, or 409.75 points, to 21,846.45. HSBC said preliminary readings showed Chinese factory activity had contracted in March, adding to concerns about the world's number two economy. The British banking giant’s flash purchasing managers index came in at 48.1, an eight-month low and down from 48.5 in February. A final figure will be released next week. Anything below 50 indicates contraction while a figure above points to expansion. “China’s growth momentum continued to slow down,” HSBC economist Qu Hongbin said in a statement. “Weakness is broadly based with domestic demand softening further. We expect Beijing to launch a series of policy measures to stabilise growth.” But despite the downbeat results, regional markets were broadly buoyant, with Japan’s Nikkei surging on bargain-hunting following a 1.65 percent dive on Thursday. The market was closed Friday for a public holiday. Providing support to Tokyo shares was a weaker yen, which helps exporters. In afternoon trade the dollar bought 102.61 yen, compared with 102.23 yen in New York on Friday. The euro fetched $ 1.3817 against $ 1.3794 and 141.80 yen from 141.87 yen, according to AFP.