"Asian Stocks" Asia-Pacific stock markets generally perform well, with Japanese and Indian stock markets rising, while mining stocks such as Rio Tinto fell over 4%

U.S. inflation last month was lower than expected, while core inflation met expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1% last Friday (13th). The Asia-Pacific stock markets were generally positive this morning (16th), with several markets closed for holidays.

The Shanghai and Shenzhen stock markets and Taiwan's stock market are closed. The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index rose 138 points or 0.5% to close at 26,705 points, with a turnover of HKD 85 billion.

Japanese stocks fluctuated positively, with the Nikkei average rising 109 points or 0.2% to 57,051 points. SoftBank rose 6.5%, Sanrio rose 6%, Sony rose 1.9%, while Fast Retailing fell 2.5%. South Korean stocks are closed for holidays. The Indian Nifty 50 index rose 18 points or less than 0.1% to 25,489 points. Indian Coal and Indian Grid rose 2.5% and 2.4%, respectively, while HDFC Bank rose 2%.

The Australian S&P/ASX 200 index rose 19 points or 0.2% to 8,937 points. Mining stocks Rio Tinto and BHP fell 4.2% and 1.5%, respectively, after a fatal accident occurred at Rio Tinto's iron ore project in Guinea, resulting in the death of a contractor. Gold mining stock Newmont rose 3.2%. The New Zealand Stock Exchange 50 index fell 80 points or 0.6% to 13,117 points.

In the Singapore stock market, the Straits Times Index closed up less than 1 point at 4,938 points. Singtel rose 1.4%, while DBS and UOB fell 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively. The Malaysian and Philippine stock markets fell 0.2% and 0.6%, while the Thai stock market rose 0.2%. The Indonesian and Vietnamese stock markets are closed