Abe Win Boosts Nikkei, Other Mkts Mixed

TOKYO (AP) -- Shares were mixed Monday in Asia, while Japan's benchmark rose on the back of a parliamentary election victory by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democrats, who had promised stability and growth.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 1.1 percent to 21,696.65. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 lost 0.2 percent to 5,894.00. South Korea's Kospi was flat at 2,490.05. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.6 percent to 28,327.36, while the Shanghai Composite inched up nearly 0.1 percent to 3,380.70. India's Sensez fell 0.2 percent and shares in Southeast Asia were mixed.

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WALL STREET: Wall Street ended the week with the Standard & Poor's 500 and Dow Jones indexes reaching their fifth record close in a row. The S&P 500 index rose 0.5 percent to 2,575.21. The Dow gained 0.7 percent to 23,328.63 and the Nasdaq composite added 0.4 percent to 6,629.05. The S&P 500 and the Dow are now on a six-week winning streak.

TRUMP TAXES: Investor sentiment has gotten a boost from President Donald Trump's plan to slash corporate taxes and make other business-friendly changes to U.S. tax laws. Under the administration's plan, the first major overhaul of the tax code in three decades, corporations would see their top tax rate cut from 35 percent to 20 percent. Should the reforms pass, interest rates are also likely to move higher, which will benefit banks and other financial companies.

JAPAN ELECTION: Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling Liberal Democratic Party scored a win in the nationwide parliamentary election Sunday, partly because of a splintered opposition. But a new pacifist opposition party made dramatic gains, underscoring voters' doubts about Abe's agenda for revising Japan's pacifist constitution and strengthening the military.

ANALYST VIEWPOINT: "While the win by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Liberal Democratic Party had been widely expected, the strong mandate awarded via the landslide win made all the difference for markets this morning," Jingyi Pan of IG said in a commentary.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude added 33 cents to $52.17 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Friday it gained 33 cents to $51.84 per barrel. Brent crude, used to price international oils, climbed 19 cents $57.94 a barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The dollar strengthened to 113.80 yen from 113.34 yen late Friday in Asia. The euro fell to $1.1755 from $1.1802.

(BE)

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