Hong Kong leads Asia-Pacific markets lower; Australia's central bank keeps interest rate unchanged

The Reserve Bank of Australia kept rates steady at 4.1% after its meeting, in line with Reuters' expectations.

"Inflation in Australia has passed its peak but is still too high and will remain so for some time yet," the central bank's governor, Michele Bullock, said in a statement.

She noted that while goods inflation has eased further, prices of many services are still continuing to climb, alongside a jump in fuel prices.

Australia's inflation in August ticked up up 5.2% year on year, according to official data.

"Returning inflation to target within a reasonable timeframe remains the Board's priority," the statement further read.

"Some further tightening of monetary policy may be required to ensure that inflation returns to target in a reasonable timeframe," Bullock said.

—Lee Ying Shan

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 3% in early trading, leading wider losses in Asia, dragged by the real estate and energy sectors.

Shares of Hong Kong-listed property stocks were in the red. Country Garden Holdings plunged 7.18%, while Longfor Group Holdings lost 4.82%. New World Development shed 6.69%, and Henderson Land Development traded 6.15% lower.

Energy stocks also posted losses, with PetroChina losing 5.93% and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp dipping 5.14%.

The index last traded down 2.77% after coming back on from a holiday on Monday.

—Lee Ying Shan

Shares of embattled Chinese property giant Evergrande soared after it resumed trading in Hong Kong on Tuesday.

The stock rose 22% in early trade, after briefly touching 46 Hong Kong cents shortly after the open. Shares have been volatile since resuming trade in late August following a 17-month suspension. Evergrande's market valuation has been hovering around 5 billion Hong Kong dollars ($639.8 million), a fraction of its value prior to the developer's default.

Last week, the Chinese property firm announced that its director and executive chairman is under scrutiny over suspected crimes.

Evergrande's EV unit also halted trading Tuesday, citing a pending announcement.

—Lee Ying Shan

The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to keep rates unchanged in the upcoming policy decision meeting, ANZ forecasts.

"We still expect a really hawkish pause from the reserve bank of Australia. We're not expecting them to raise rates in the next couple of months," said Adelaide Timbrell, senior economist at ANZ.

It will be the central bank's first meeting under new governor Michele Bullock. According to a Reuters poll, the central bank is expected to hold rates at 4.10%.

"We'll see an extended pause from the reserve bank right up until November next year," Timbrell forecasts, estimating that the bank will likely only start cutting rates in the fourth quarter of next year.

However, "discouraging" inflation results could mean added risks of further action, the senior economist cautioned.

Australia's inflation in August ticked up 5.2% year on year, according to official statistics.

"But every time we get some of these discouraging inflation results... we do see the risk that they'll need to take further action at some point," she said.

—Lee Ying Shan

Shares in this European delivery company are set to double over the next 12 months, according to analysts from Goldman Sachs.

The U.S. investment bank describes the company as a "market leader" of sorts and expects it to benefit from a "more competitive landscape."

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Amala Balakrishner

Many stocks have become "a bit cheaper" and investors could get good returns, according to Ted Alexander, chief investment officer of BML Funds.

Alexander manages the BML Global Fund, which was launched only in September. The fund aims to invest in strong businesses that are undervalued by the market, without a bias toward growth or value stocks.

He named five discounted stocks to consider right now, including one he calls a "long-term winner."

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Weizhen Tan

Irrational behavior due to concerns over the stability of the U.S. banking system has made one wealth manager's stock a cheap investment opportunity, according to value investor Daniel O'Keefe.

O'Keefe, who manages the Artisan Global Value Fund, believes this fear is unfounded and stems from a misunderstanding of the business.

CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.

— Ganesh Rao

The World Bank forecasts growth in in the developing East Asia and Pacific region to remain strong at 5% in 2023. However, its expects growth to ease in the second half of 2023 and fall to 4.5% in 2024, according to its regional update published on Sunday.

Regional growth in the Asia-Pacific region is estimated to come in higher than average growth projected for all other emerging market and developing economies. To be sure, the recent numbers are lower than were previously projected.

Growth in China in 2023 is projected to be 5.1%. Excluding China, regional growth is expected to come in at 4.6% .

— Hakyung Kim

Crypto prices rallied on Monday, pushing bitcoin to its highest level more than six weeks.

Bitcoin rose more than 4.5% to $28,329, for its highest level since Aug. 17, when it traded as high as 29,108.3. Ether rose more than 3% to cross above $1,700.

Crypto-related stocks Coinbase, Marathon Digital, MicroStrategy and Riot all rose more than 5% in premarket trading.

— Hakyung Kim, Jesse Pound, Gina Francolla

December gold futures contracts fell to $1846.60 the ounce Monday, the lowest since March 10, 2023 (when it traded at $1830).

December silver contracts similarly dropped to $21.725 the ounce, their weakest since March 16 ($21.59).

Both the Gold Miners (GDX) and Silver Miners (SIL) ETFs are down almost 1% in early, premarket trading, led by Harmony Gold, Gold Fields and AngloGold, all down by 3% or more.

— Scott Schnipper, Gina Francolla