Asia-Pacific markets mostly rise as investors await key economic readings; Australia hits record closing high

This is CNBC's live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.

Asia-Pacific markets traded mostly higher on Monday as the region kick-started a data-heavy week, with investors focused on economic readings from several countries, including Japan, South Korea and China.

Over the weekend, China released its official purchasing managers' index reading for November. Manufacturing PMI came in at 50.3 — its highest level since April — beating the 50.2 expected by economists polled by Reuters. Manufacturing PMI came in at 50.1 in October.

China's non-manufacturing PMI slipped to 50.0 from 50.2 in the previous month, while composite PMI held steady at 50.8.

A reading higher than 50 shows expansion in activity, while below that shows contraction.

On Monday, manufacturing PMI readings from S&P Global will be released for economies throughout Asia, including the Caixin PMI survey for China.{

Caixin PMI: China’s factory activity expands again in November, beats forecasts

China's manufacturing activity continued to expand among smaller manufacturers in November, signaling that the country's recent stimulus efforts have already helped to lift certain sectors of its ailing economy, according to a private survey released Monday.

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing purchasing manager's index came in at 51.5, beating the median estimate of 50.5 in a Reuters poll. This also marks the second month in a row that the official reading has stayed above the key 50 level, which separates growth from contraction. 

This private gauge comes after the official PMI data, released Saturday, also indicated that manufacturing activity in the country expanded to 50.3 in November from 50.1 in the previous month. The reading beat Reuters' expectations of 50.2.

Read the full story here.

— Lee Ying Shan

Australia's retail sales rose 3.4% in October, its fastest year-on-year rise since May 2023.

Indonesia will disclose its inflation numbers for November later in the day.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded up 0.14%, ending at a record closing high of 8,447.9.

South Korea's markets were the outlier on Monday, after preliminary trade data revealed exports grew at their slowest pace since September 2023 over the weekend.

Exports grew 1.4% year-on-year in November, missing expectations of a 2.8% growth from economists polled by Reuters and a sharp decline from the 4.6% rise in October.

The Kospi slipped marginally to 2,454.48, and the small-cap Kosdaq fell 0.35% to a 23 month low of 675.84.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was up 0.8% and closed at 38,513.02, while the broad-based Topix was 1.27% higher at 2,714.72.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index gained 0.46%, while mainland China's CSI 300 was up 0.52%. The Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index advanced about 0.42% after growth in China's new home prices accelerated in November.{

China's new home price growth rises to 2.4% in November, private survey shows

New home prices in China rose at a faster pace in November, in a sign that the country's embattled property market could be seeing an upturn.

The average price for new homes over 100 cities in China climbed 0.36% month-on-month and 2.4% year on year, a private survey by the property researcher China Index Academy showed.

This compares with October's month-on-month rise of 0.29% and year-on-year growth of 2.08%.

Last week, a Reuters poll had forecast home prices in China were expected to fall at a slower pace this year and next, before stabilizing in 2026 as support measures starts to take effect.

— Lim Hui Jie

On Friday in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 rose to new heights and recorded their best months of 2024 amid a shortened trading day.

The S&P 500 added 0.56%, while the Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.83%. The Dow climbed 188.59 points, or 0.42%. Both the Dow and S&P 500 notched new intraday and closing highs.

Some of the upward momentum came from chip stocks, which popped after Bloomberg reported that the Biden administration was considering additional barriers to the sale of semiconductor equipment to China that weren't as strong as previously expected. Lam Research rallied more than 3%, while Nvidia jumped more than 2%. 

— CNBC's Alex Harring contributed to this report.

Adani investor GQG’s shares plunge over 15% after UBS downgrades stock, cuts target price

Shares of major Adani Group investor GQG Partners fell as much as 15.74% on Monday after Swiss bank UBS downgraded the stock from a "buy" to "neutral" on Friday.

UBS also cut its target price on GQG from $3.30 Australian dollars to AU$2.30. The stock was trading at AU$2.08 as of 2:52 p.m. Sydney time.

This is the Swiss firm's first ever downgrade of the stock since it began covering GQG in 2022. The Australian-listed investment firm is the fourth largest investor in flagship Adani Enterprises.

Read the full story here.

— Lim Hui Jie

Caixin PMI: China’s factory activity expands again in November, beats forecasts

China's manufacturing activity continued to expand among smaller manufacturers in November, signaling that the country's recent stimulus efforts have already helped to lift certain sectors of its ailing economy, according to a private survey released Monday.

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing purchasing manager's index came in at 51.5, beating the median estimate of 50.5 in a Reuters poll. This also marks the second month in a row that the official reading has stayed above the key 50 level, which separates growth from contraction. 

This private gauge comes after the official PMI data, released Saturday, also indicated that manufacturing activity in the country expanded to 50.3 in November from 50.1 in the previous month. The reading beat Reuters' expectations of 50.2.

Read the full story here.

— Lee Ying Shan

Australia October retail sales climb at fastest pace since May 2023

Australia posted a 3.4% rise in seasonally adjusted retail sales for October compared to the same period last year, marking its fastest rise since May 2023.

On a month-on-month basis, seasonally adjusted retail sales rose 0.6%, beating expectations of a 0.4% rise from economists polled by Reuters.

Total retail sales came in at 36.7 billion Australian dollars ($23.85 billion).

— Lim Hui Jie

China's new home price growth rises to 2.4% in November, private survey shows

New home prices in China rose at a faster pace in November, in a sign that the country's embattled property market could be seeing an upturn.

The average price for new homes over 100 cities in China climbed 0.36% month-on-month and 2.4% year on year, a private survey by the property researcher China Index Academy showed.

This compares with October's month-on-month rise of 0.29% and year-on-year growth of 2.08%.

Last week, a Reuters poll had forecast home prices in China were expected to fall at a slower pace this year and next, before stabilizing in 2026 as support measures starts to take effect.

— Lim Hui Jie

CNBC Pro: An Indian automaker unveiled 2 EVs priced $25,000. Analysts say it's a buy

One of India's largest automakers, unveiled two new electric vehicles recently that are priced competitively at around $25,000, challenging both domestic and international rivals in the growing Indian market.

Now, investment banks suggest there are upside risks for the stock if the company's new vehicles take off.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

No market corrections yet in 2024

There hasn't been a stock market correction, or a pullback of 10% or more, in the S&P 500 this year, according to Bespoke Investment Group.

Since 1928, the S&P 500 has averaged a correction once every 346 days, almost once a year, the research firm said. The market has been stronger in recent years, however, as half the yearly periods since 2000 haven't had such a pullback.

The S&P 500 is up more than 26% in 2024, on track for its best year since 2021.

— Yun Li

U.S. equities may near their peak before Trump’s inauguration, Jefferies strategist says

U.S. stocks have soared this month under the promises of more market deregulation under a second Trump administration. But in a Friday email, Jefferies strategist Christopher Wood hypothesized if the market would reach its peak before Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20.

"Financial markets can get very extreme at inflection points and it has to be wondered whether such a point is approaching," he wrote. "At a time when there is much talk about 'American exceptionalism,' it is worth noting that the S&P 500 price to sales ratio is almost back at a record high. America is also now 66.7% of the MSCI All Country World Index which is an all-time high."

Wood added that against this backdrop, institutional and retail investors alike were expressing "zero interest" in investing in ex-U.S. equities.

— Lisa Kailai Han

S&P 500 could melt up to 6,300 by end of year, Evercore ISI says

U.S. stocks "remain in the throes of a powerful yearend surge" likely to carry S&P 500 index futures to 6,300 by New Year's, or 5% above Wednesday's close, according to a note out earlier this week by Evercore ISI chartered market technician Rich Ross.

Ross titled his note, "Tis the Season for a Squeezn," referring to the chance that stocks will be pushed higher the remainder of the year partly by investors who had bet against a continued rally now being forced to cover their short sale positions.

Fundamentally, the advance is being driven by "a pro-cyclical expansion of breadth across Small Caps, Consumer [stocks], Financials, Industrials and Technology" during what is already the strongest time of the year for stocks, Ross wrote. Also buoying prices are static crude oil prices and inflation, coupled with fading dollar strength and Treasury yields that have stopped rising, "the sum of which continues to drive [credit] 'Spreads to the tights and Stocks to new heights' into '25,'" the chart watcher said.

The S&P 500 would score a 32.1% gain in 2024 if it reached 6,300 by year-end. The benchmark ended last year at 4,769.83 after climbing 24.2% in 2023.

— Scott Schnipper