Chinese finance minister says United States shouldn’t raise rates yet

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng index added 1.4pc to 22,763.43 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index gained 2.1pc to 10,620.99. The euro advanced to $1.1373 from $1.1359. Improving investor sentiment bodes well for a slew of Chinese companies slated to launch Hong Kong initial public offerings in the coming weeks, including China Reinsurance, Huarong Asset Management and China global Capital Corp (CICC). Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index slipped 0.7%, with energy shares leading losses after surging last week. Demand for the commodity will grow and non-OPEC supply is due to contract, Abdalla Salem El-Badri, the secretary-general of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries said at a conference in Kuwait City on Sunday. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday.

The widely-tracked VIX index .VIX , a volatility gauge of investor nervousness, was at its lowest since late August, a sign that optimism was returning to the markets after a tumultuous summer in which major indexes lost more than a quarter of their value. “I would be cautious”.

Real estate (OTC BB: REACD – news) shares also posted robust gains, boosted by recent data showing in a recovery in property sales.

Meanwhile, top finance officials urged the Federal Reserve to proceed with the much-awaited rate increase at an annual meeting of the worldwide Monetary Fund. While the move would spur investors to move money back into the US from emerging markets, many policy makers are frustrated by the uncertainty the Fed’s delay has introduced. Brent crude (LCOc1), the global benchmark, traded 40 cents higher on the day at $53.05 a barrel, having settles at a three-month high on Friday. It closed as high as $53.30 a barrel on Thursday, the highest level since July.

The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, strengthened 87 basis points to 6.3406 against the US dollar on Monday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trading System. Its guidance brought the onshore yuan to its strongest level against the US dollar since Beijing devalued the yuan. The 4.67 per cent average yield on corporate debentures in China is also lower than the 6.46 per cent on offshore yuan notes known as Dim Sum bonds, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch indexes.