ASIA MARKETS: Asian Markets Bounce Back After Last Week's Losses

Rising dollar helps Nikkei push past 20,000 mark again

Asia-Pacific stocks began the week mostly higher, buoyed by Friday's gains in the U.S., after solid jobs data there boosted the dollar and brightened overall market sentiment.

Meanwhile, the Group of 20 meeting of world leaders made little impact on markets, as there was less discord than expected.

As the dollar pushed above Yen114 in Asian trading -- the pair reached levels not seen in two months -- Japanese stocks helped lead the way in morning action.

The Nikkei rose 0.8%, rising back above the 20,000 after closing at a three-week low on Friday. That helped Japan's exporters. Panasonic (6752.TO) rose 1.8%, Nintendo (7974.TO) climbed 3.7% and Tokyo Electron (8035.TO) added 2.3%.

Meanwhile, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rebounded 0.4% after Friday's 1% decline. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index ended up 0.6%, while the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.2%.

Oil stocks, though, were lower in Australia and across the region after Friday's latest crude selloff -- stoked by a rebound in the U.S. dollar, which recorded its best week of 2017, according to the WSJ Dollar Index.

While oil rose nearly 1% in Asian trading, oil firms' shares fell. Japan Petroleum Exploration (1662.TO) fell 0.7% and Australia's Santos (SSLTY) slid 1.4%.

"Another strong rise in oil rig activity in the U.S. could see oil prices come under further downside pressure earlier this week," ANZ Research said.

Elsewhere -- and after U.S. Treasury yields rose Friday -- the Bank of Japan's end-of-week action kept domestic rates in check on Monday. The 10-year yield for Japanese government bonds was recently unchanged at 0.085%.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 10, 2017 05:01 ET (09:01 GMT)