Asia-Pacific Stocks Mostly Rise; China Announces New Anti-Monopoly Rules Aimed At Tech Giants

Stocks in Asia-Pacific were mostly higher on Monday, as investors monitored shares of China’s tech giants following the release of new anti-monopoly guidelines over the weekend.

Chinese tech shares were mixed as concerns that Beijing was tightening restrictions on the country’s tech giants weighed.

By the Monday market close in Hong Kong, shares of Chinese tech giants listed in the city were mixed. Tencent was higher by 0.48% while Meituan gained 1.25%. Meanwhile, JD.com declined 0.6% and Alibaba dipped 0.62%.

China’s State Administration for Market Regulation released a new set of rules that will likely put pressure on leading internet services in the country such as Alibaba’s Taobao or Tencent’s WeChat Pay, according to Reuters. Separately, regulators on Monday slapped a 3 million yuan (nearly $500,000) fine on Vipshop — an online discount retailer — over anti-competitive acts, Reuters said.

The broader Hang Seng index in Hong Kong rose 0.11% to close at 29,319.47. Mainland Chinese stocks also advanced on the day: The Shanghai composite was up 1.03% to 3,532.45 while the Shenzhen component gained 1.748% to 15,269.63.

Meanwhile, shares of South Korean automakers Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors plunged on Monday and fell 6.21% and 14.98%, respectively.

It came after the two firms announced they were “not in talks with Apple on autonomous vehicle development,” according to CNBC’s translation of their regulatory filings.

-CNBC MARKET