Stock market. ASIA STOCKS fell after China data

Asian stock markets traded lower on Monday as slowing manufacturing growth weighed on China, while a stronger yen hit Japanese stocks.

China was a focus on Monday, with Shanghai and Hong Kong reacting to economic news, as HSBC’s preliminary December manufacturing data for China fell to 50.5 in December, compared with a final reading of 50.8 in November. 

The Shanghai Composite ended1.6% lower, and in Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 0.6%.

Financial issues were under pressure, with HSBC Holdings PLC down 1.2%, and Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. off 1.1%. 

Among miners, shares of Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd., or Chalco gave up 1.5% and Jiangxi Copper Co. shed 0.1%. 

Most regional markets drifted lower on Monday, with South Korea’s Kospi down 0.1%, and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 0.2% lower.

The firmer yen weighed on Japanese shares, with the Nikkei Average down 1.6%, overshadowing a mixed outcome from the Bank of Japan’s quarterly tankan survey. 

Shares in Softbank Corp. — one of the largest constituents on the Nikkei Average — fell 3.2% after The Wall Street Journal reported that the firm’s Sprint unit is considering a takeover of its smaller rival T-Mobile US , with a bid potentially coming in the first half of 2014.

Mazda Motor Corp. shares paced the sector’s decline by falling 2.6%. 

Shares of Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp. climbed 2.1% following the Japanese government’s decision last week to sell a portion of its stake in the company. An NTT official said the company plans to buy back the shares from the government, according to The Wall Street Journal.

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