Japan's Nikkei drops by 3%, while Australia reaches a new record high, as investors anticipate the release of China's data.

Japan's Nikkei drops by 3%, while Australia reaches a new record high, as investors anticipate the release of China's data.
Japan's Nikkei drops by 3%, while Australia reaches a new record high, as investors anticipate the release of China's data.
  • On Monday, Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped by 3% and the yen weakened against the dollar in response to the Liberal Democratic Party's election results from last Friday.
  • The official PMI numbers for September will be released by China, with economists predicting a softer contraction in manufacturing PMI at 49.5, compared to August's 49.1.

On Monday, Japan's stocks tumbled over 3%, while Australia's stocks hit a fresh high in anticipation of key economic data from China and Japan.

The country will release its retail sales data for August, with a Reuters poll predicting a 2.3% increase year over year, lower than the previously revised 2.7%. Meanwhile, its broad-based Topix index experienced a smaller decline of 2.67%.

The official purchasing managers' index numbers for September will be released by China, with economists predicting a manufacturing PMI of 49.5, indicating a softer contraction compared to August's 49.1.

On Monday, the private survey compiled by S&P Global, known as the Caixin PMI, will also be made public.

The S&P/ASX 200 index in Australia increased by 0.56%, surpassing its previous record high of 8,246.2.

The small cap Kosdaq in South Korea experienced a slight rise of 0.13%.

The Hang Seng index futures in Hong Kong were lower than the HSI's last close, at 20,632.30.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a new high in the U.S. as traders evaluated new data indicating progress in controlling inflation.

The Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq Composite all experienced slight changes in their stock prices.

Traders are evaluating the positive August inflation data, as the personal consumption expenditures price index, which is the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation measure, rose 0.1%, in line with the expectations of economists surveyed by Dow Jones.

PCE's annualized growth rate was 2.2%, lower than the predicted 2.3%.

—CNBC's Brian Evans and Pia Singh contributed to this report.

by Lim Hui Jie

Markets