Asian stocks open mixed but mostly lower

Asian stocks opened mixed but mostly lower in the second session of  the week, with Japanese, Chinese and New Zealand stocks falling in addition to Hong Kong's Hang Seng, while South Korea's Kospi and the Australian shares rose, after the release of the minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia's monetary policy meeting, which was held on July 2nd.

The Bank of Australia's monetary policymakers noted in their minutes of the last meeting that they approved a 25 basis point short-term benchmark interest rate cut for the second consecutive meeting, to the lowest rate for all-time at 1.00% from 1.25%, which was previously expected by market analysts at the time, as the Reserve Bank of Australia was willing to adjust interest rates if needed.

"The board will continue to monitor labor market developments closely and adjust monetary policy if necessary to support sustainable growth and the inflation target over time," stated in the minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia's monetary policy meeting. "Low interest rates will provide more jobs for Australians and help advance towards the inflation target. "

Japanese stock indices saw a decline during today's trading session, with the broader Topix index falling by 0.64% to lose 10.16 points down to 1,566.15, Nikkei 225 fell by 0.74% to lose 160.12 points down to 21,525.78.

China's benchmark stock index, CSI 300 fell by 0.37% (14.03 points) to reach 3,810.16. The Shanghai Composite index fell by 0.22%, shedding 6.37 points to 2,935.81.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index shed 0.15% (43.92 points) to 28,510.96, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.08% (1.69 points) to 2,084.17.

To the New Zealand NZX 50 index, which fell 0.25% (26.44 points) to 10,640.12. On the other hand, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index gained 0.07% (4.41 points) and reached 6,657.40.