Asian shares were mixed on Monday as investors eyeballed surging coronavirus cases in the region. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 2.2% to 22,195.38. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was flat at 5,928.50. South Korea's Kospi edged 0.1% higher to 2,251.67. Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 0.8% to 24,395.40, while the Shanghai Composite index jumped 1.4% to 3,355.73, AP reported. Benchmark U.S. crude oil lost 21 cents to $40.06 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It rose 35 cents to settle at $40.27 a barrel on Friday. Brent crude fell 13 cents to $43.39 a barrel. The U.S. dollar fell to 105.83 Japanese yen from 105.90 yen on Friday. The euro inched down to $1.1775 from $1.1779.
