BANGKOK (AP) — Shares retreated Monday in Asia after China reported lackluster economic indicators for November, while bitcoin surged to fresh highs, topping $106,000.

Oil prices fell and U.S. futures were little changed.

Bitcoin was trading at $104,948 early Monday, up 3.4% but down from an earlier high of $106,495.

The price of the cryptocurrency has surged since the election in November given U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s bitcoin-friendly stance. Trump signaled a lighter regulatory approach to digital currencies with his choice of crypto advocate Paul Atkins to be the next chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Bitcoin was trading below $70,000 before the Nov. 5 election.

A report Monday showed Chinese retail sales slowed in November, while growth in factory output was flat and home sales declined. The report said the economy and employment were stable, but noted a complicated “external environment,” reflecting unease over the outlook in coming months once U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office, potentially delivering on promises to sharply hike tariffs on imports from China.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index edged 0.1% lower, to 39,438.74, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong lost 0.8% to 19,821.24.

The Shanghai Composite index was almost unchanged, at 3,390.91.

South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.3% to 2,486.47 as South Korean law enforcement authorities were pushing to summon impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol for questioning over his short-lived martial law decree and the Constitutional Court met to discuss whether to remove him from office or reinstate him.

Taiwan’s Taiex edged 0.1% higher, while the Sensex in India fell 0.4%. Thailand’s SET dropped 0.9%.

On Friday, major stock indexes on Wall Street drifted to a mixed finish Friday, capping a rare bumpy week for the market.

The S&P 500 ended essentially flat, down less than 0.1% at 6,051.09. The benchmark index posted a loss for the week, its first after three straight weekly gains.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 43,828.06, while the Nasdaq composite rose 0.1% to 19,926.72, ending just below the record high it set on Wednesday.

There were more than twice as many decliners than gainers on the New York Stock Exchange.

Gains in technology stocks helped temper losses in communication services, financials and other sectors of the market.

Broadcom surged 24.4% for the biggest gain in the S&P 500 after the semiconductor company beat Wall Street’s profit targets and gave a glowing forecast, highlighting its artificial intelligence products. The company also raised its dividend.

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SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korea’s finance ministry said on Monday authorities would continue monitoring financial and foreign exchange markets.

South Korea’s parliament on Saturday voted to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his short-lived attempt to impose martial law, a move that had shocked the nation and its financial markets.

(Reporting by Jihoon Lee; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

By Giselda Vagnoni

ROME (Reuters) – Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Sunday she would lead the government responsibly until the end of its mandate as parliament debates a budget aimed at supporting the euro zone’s third-largest economy while trimming its debt.

Rome, which was put under the EU’s excessive deficit procedure this year, hopes to bring its deficit below the European Union’s 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) ceiling in 2026 from 3.8% targeted this year and 7.2% last year.

Italy’s parliament, in which Meloni holds a large majority, will on Tuesday begin a debate on the 2025 budget, which must be approved by Dec. 31.

“Each of us is aware of the responsibility we have on our shoulders, and we will honour to the last day the task given to us by the Italians in this nation,” Meloni said at a meeting of her Brothers of Italy party in Rome.

Ratings agencies Fitch and DBRS upgraded Rome’s outlook to “positive” from “stable” in October, citing improved fiscal path.

Investors consider the country’s high bond yields as attractive given the stable political situation and the likelihood the European Central Bank’s continues to cut rates.

The premium investors pay to hold Italian government bonds over top-rated German ones narrowed on Friday to around 113 basis points, from more than 240 basis points on Sept. 26 2022, when Meloni’s coalition won the general election.

The positive sentiment in the Italian bond market contrasts with neighbouring France, whose political crisis is seen as an obstacle to reducing its deficit, leading to a credit rating downgrade by Moody’s.

INTERNATIONAL CREDIBILITY

Meloni, who announced her resignation on Sunday as president of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) party, said the stability of her government was Italy’s “greatest element of strength” because it “guarantees international credibility”.

But despite falling annual budget deficits, Italy’s debt, which is proportionally the second-highest in the 20-nation bloc, is forecast by Rome to climb from 134.8% of gross domestic product last year to 137.8% in 2026, before gradually declining.

Economic growth is also a concern, with the latest figures pointing to an annual rate of almost half of 1% forecast.

The 2025 budget funds stimulus measures including income tax cuts for lower earners, while roughly 4 billion euros ($4.20 billion) will be raised from changes to tax on banks and insurance products.

According to amendments to Rome’s 2025 budget seen by Reuters, the government is scaling back plans to cut around 4.6 billion euros from the funds earmarked for the automotive industry between now and 2030 by restoring 200 million euros a year in 2026 and 2027.

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