Shares in Australia up on rate cut, China markets down in profit taking

Investing.com - Shares in Sydney rose as the central bank met expectations and cut its cash rate, leading investors to expect further inflowws into equities.

The S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.23%, while in Greater China the Hang Seng index was down 1.00% and the Shanghai Composite was off 1.84% as investors cashed in on recent gains.

Australia's central bank cut its cash rate 25 basis points to a record low 2%, citing moderate prices ahead as providing the chance to cut, but the market likely saw the move as an economic boost and took the currency higher even as Governor Glenn Stevens said it likely needed to fall further.

Japanese markets are closed today to mark Children's Day public holiday, a period commonly known as Golden Week. Markets are closed through Wednesday and re-open on Thursday.

Earlier in Australia, the AiGroup April services index fell 0.5 point to 49.7 in April, down from 50.2 in March.

Australia's March trade data came in at A$1.3 billion, wider than the A$1 billion seen and compared with a deficit of A$1.265 billion in February.

Overnight, stocks on the U.S. equities markets moved broadly higher on Monday, building on gains from late last week as the S&P 500 neared an all-time record closing high.

The S&P 500 Composite index moved above its record closing high of 2,117.69 in intra-day trading before falling back slightly to 2,114.49 (up 6.20 or 0.29%) at the close. The NASDAQ Composite index also gained more than 0.2% on a bullish day of trading.

Stocks on the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the NASDAQ Composite index also gained more than 0.2% on a bullish day of trading. The Dow gained 46.34 or 0.26% to 18,070.40.

On Monday, after data showed that U.S. factory orders rose for the first time in eight months in March and as upbeat U.S. economic reports published on Friday continued to support.

In a report, the U.S. Census Bureau said factory orders jumped by a seasonally adjusted 2.1% in March, just above expectations for a gain of 2.0%.

Factory orders fell by 0.1% in February, whose figure was revised down from a previously reported gain of 0.2%.

The dollar also remained supported after the Institute for Supply Management reported on Friday that activity in the manufacturing sector was stable in April, after slowing in the five previous months.

Another report showed that U.S. consumer sentiment rose in April to its highest level since January.

The reports fuelled optimism that the U.S. economy has turned a corner after a recent soft patch.