Most Asian markets rose on Monday, taking their lead from U.S. stocks' gains on Friday. Although Wall Street was higher on Friday, they were lower for the week as stocks have stalled near record highs ahead of the coming earnings season.
The Nikkei Share Average was flat, as the market stabilized after a 1.4% slide on Friday - the index's sharpest fall since mid-May.
Stocks in Tokyo were held back as the yen strengthened a touch against the dollar - it was last at 101.34, compared with 101.41 late Friday in New York.
Recent data however suggests that traders are making more bets that the yen will soften, as the number of net short noncommercial positions on the Japanese currency rose to 71,223 in the week to June 24, compared with 68,038 a week earlier, according to figures from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea's Kospi added 0.4% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.3%, with choppy trading in Sydney as investors adjusted their portfolio at the end of the financial year. In China, the Hang Seng Index was up 0.4% and the Shanghai Composite Index added 0.3%.
On Tuesday China releasing manufacturing data for June, and the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy decision. On Thursday, the focus will be on the U.S. labor report that will give an update on the health of the world's largest economy.
