Leading indexes on Chinese stock exchanges rose significantly in the early hours of trading, driven by gains for shares in the food sector. This followed reports of meetings in the Chinese leadership to stimulate consumption.
In Shanghai and Shenzhen, the composite indexes were up 1.6 and 2.1 percent, respectively. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index was up 1.3 percent.
In Tokyo, indexes pointed down, minus 0.5 percent for Nikkei 225 and minus 0.3 percent for the broader Topix.
