Asia-Pacific stocks mostly higher

Asia-Pacific stocks were mostly higher on Thursday, with shares of Chinese tech giant Alibaba in the spotlight following reports that Chinese regulators will probe the firm for suspected monopolistic behavior.

Alibaba shares in Hong Kong fell 8.13% on Thursday.

That came following reports that Chinese authorities will probe the Alibaba Group over suspected monopolistic behavior. Alibaba-affiliate Ant Group also confirmed Thursday that it had “received a meeting notice from regulators.”

The news comes on the heels of an increasing — and largely unexpected — push by Chinese authorities to rein in their biggest tech firms through regulatory action.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.42% while the Topix index advanced 0.49%. South Korea’s Kospi also jumped 1.24%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was 0.16% higher at 26,386.56. Stocks in mainland China lagged, as the Shanghai composite fell 0.21% by the afternoon while the Shenzhen component was 0.333% lower.

Meanwhile, shares in Australia climbed, with the S&P/ASX 200 up 0.33% to 6,664.80. The Straits Times Index in Singapore gained 0.3% to 2,842.04.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.38%.

Avadoot Shah

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