ASIA STOCKS closed mix

Mainland Chinese stocks fluctuated in choppy trade Monday after Beijing removed a floor on banks’ lending rates, while Japanese shares swung between gains and losses after the ruling government regained control of the parliament’s upper house.

Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average  added 0.47% at 14,658.04, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index retreated 0.05% to 21,351.91 and  China’s Shanghai Composite rose 0.61% to 2,004.76.

The performance in Tokyo came after the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s coalition easily won a majority of the 121 seats contested in the upper house elections over the weekend. The victory gave Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s LDP control over both houses, consolidating its political power.

Telecommunication and insurance shares advanced, though a strengthened yen weighed on many exporters.

Shares of Softbank Corp.  climbed 0.6%, Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp.  gained 1%, and Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co.   rose 0.3%.

On the downside, Nissan Motor Corp.  eased 0.8%, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.   retreated 3.5%, and Renesas Electronics Corp.   dropped 3.6%, as the U.S. dollar fell to below the ¥100-level.

In Monday trade, shares of China Construction Bank Corp. lost 2.8%, and those of Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd.  shed 1% in Shanghai.

Among other notable decliners, Poly Real Estate Group Co.  fell 1.4%, and Datang International Power Generation Co.  shed 1%.

In Hong Kong, China Resources Land Ltd. fell 0.4%, while most of the major Chinese banks suffered losses of less than 1%.

Elsewhere, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200  rose 0.6% and South Korea’s Kospi  added 0.7%, with the Australian shares propped up by the mining and financial sectors.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia   gained 1%, and Macquarie Group Ltd. rose 2.8%, while Newcrest Mining Ltd.   jumped 6.9% as gold prices climbed back above $1,300 an ounce.

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