Investing.com - Asian shares held weaker Tuesday after mixed trade data from China showed exports performing better than expected, but imports off sharply.
The Nikkei 225 was down 0.93%, while the S&P/ASX 200 eased 0.97% and the Shanghai Composite fell 0.65%.
In China the trade balance for September came in at a surplus of RMB376.2 billion, compared to RMB368 billion in August.
Imports plunged 17.7%, well below the expected drop of 15%, but exports eased 1.1%,better than the 6.3% decline seen. An official with the China customs office said the recent weaker yuan aided exports.
Later data showed that the trade surplus came in at $60.43 billion and that exports fell 3.7% in dollar terms, also compared to the 6.3% decline seen, and imports plummeted 20.4%, also compared to the earlier 15% drop expected.
Overnight, U.S. stocks were relatively flat on Monday, ahead of the release of a slew of quarterly reports among prominent banks later this week.
Although equities markets remained open for the Columbus Day holiday on Monday, trading was still light due to the closure of banks, bond markets and the Securities and Exchange Commission. On Tuesday, JPM is scheduled to report its earnings for the third quarter, while Goldman Sachs (N:N:GS), Bank of America (N:N:BAC), Wells Fargo (N:N:WFC) and Citigroup Inc (N:N:C) are scheduled to release their quarterly earnings later in the week.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the NASDAQ Composite index rose moderately in Monday's session, extending gains from last week when U.S. equities markets had one of their strongest weeks of the year. The Dow gained 47.30 or 0.28% to 17,131.79, while the NASDAQ inched up 8.17 or 0.17% to close on Monday at 4,838.64, continuing its push back to the symbolic 5,000 level. Following a down period in September, the Dow is on track to finish with its highest monthly gains since February.
The S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, gained 2.55 or 0.13% to 2,017.45, as six of 10 sectors closed in the green. Stocks in the Utilities, Consumer Services and Telecommunications sectors led, while stocks in the Energy and Basic Materials industries lagged.