Asian shares advance after gains on Wall Street

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced in Asia on Monday after a strong finish last week on Wall Street.

Tokyo, Hong Kong, Seoul and Shanghai all started out with modest gains and U.S. futures also edged higher. Oil prices slipped.

Stocks climbed Friday in New York, though the S&P 500 still ended with its first weekly loss in the last five. Technology stocks and banks led much of the gains, while investors focused on lackluster company earnings from big names like Intel, American Express and Honeywell.

So far, Asian markets have taken in stride recent setbacks in vanquishing the pandemic as infections have come roaring back in Japan, Thailand and India, among other countries.

Government precautions to battle surging outbreaks point to an uneven global recovery, economists say. That's especially true for tourism, an important industry for many parts of the region.

“One thing is for sure, markets have priced in the pandemic as a sprint and not a marathon. That premise could come under stress in the weeks to come, although I sorely hope I am completely wrong on this front," Jeffrey Halley of Oanda said in a commentary.

“Pandemic nerves are likely to be drowned out this week as it progresses as the pace of the data calendar picks up," he said.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 added 0.5% to 29,120.12 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong edged less than 0.1% higher to 29,151.05. In Seoul, the Kospi jumped 0.7% to 3,208.08. The Shanghai Composite index rose 0.1% to 3,476.20, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.1% to 7,055.30. Shares fell in Jakarta but rose in Taiwan and Singapore.

India's Sensex climbed 1.3% to 48,515.11, even as authorities reported newly confirmed coronavirus cases hit a daily high, topping 350,000.

On Friday, the benchmark S&P 500 rose 1.1% to 4,180.17. The...