Investing.com - China's shares closed Monday slightly lower with Tokyo shut for a holiday and trading thin in Asia generally.
The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index ended down 0.2%
Oil and petrochemical companies weakened on expectations of an imminent cut in oil-product prices, said analysts.
Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co Ltd (SS:600688) dropped 1.9%.
Last week, upbeat earnings reports from Google Inc and others sent U.S. stock prices rebounding as investors brushed off geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and in Gaza.
The Dow 30 rose 0.73%, the S&P 500 index rose 1.03%, while the NASDAQ Composite index rose 1.57%.
Despite U.S. accusations that pro-Russian separatists shot down a Malaysian Airlines plane and an ongoing Israeli ground offensive in Gaza, investors jumped in from the sidelines and went long on stocks, optimistic over upbeat earnings from tech bellwether Google.
Google's net income missed expectations in the second quarter due to heavy spending but a 22% jump in revenue to $16 billion drew applause on Wall Street.
Investors shrugged off a consumer sentiment report that missed expectations.
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary consumer sentiment index fell to a four-month low of 81.3 in July from 82.5 in June, confounding expectations for rise to 83.0.
In the week ahead, the U.S. is to release what will be closely watched data on consumer prices, home sales and manufacturing orders. Investors will also be awaiting surveys on private sector activity in the euro zone, data on second quarter growth from the U.K. and a rate statement by New Zealand’s central bank.