Asian stocks open higher on Hong Kong developments

Asian stocks opened on the positive territory at the first session of the week, after the end of Hong Kong's District Council elections, which a stunning victory for pro-democracy candidates after voters turned out in record numbers, according to Reuters, which came after the recent protests that shook the city.

As for developments in the US-China trade file, the US National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien said on Saturday that a trade agreement with China can be secured before the end of this year, while investors are parsing the odds for Washington to freeze its upcoming $156 billion tariffs hike on Chinese goods by December 15.

Adviser O'Brien also stressed that the US will not condone the situation in Hong Kong, while China announced it will raise penalties on intellectual property violations, in the latest sign on easing the trade dispute, as the US President Donald Trump noted on Friday that a trade deal is "very close."

As for stocks, Japanese stock indices were higher during today's session, with the Topix index rising by 0.78% or 13.16 points to 1,704.50, and Nikkei 225 index rose by 0.29% or 213.73 points to 23,326.61.

The Chinese stocks also rose, as the CSI 300 index rose by 0.24% or 9.05 points to 3,859.04, and the Shanghai Composite index rose by 0.29% or 8.45 points to 2,893.74.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose by 1.75% or 465.27 points to 27,060.35, and the South Korean Kospi rose 1.08 % or 22.65 points to 2,124.61.

To Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index, which rose 0.36% or 23.92 points to 6,733.70, while New Zealand's NZX 50 rose by 0.07% or 7.55 points to 10,953.85.