Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul advanced. Tokyo edged lower. Oil rose more than $1 per barrel.
The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.8% to 3,276.71 while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo shed less than 0.1% to 27,680.41. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.5% to 20,868.29. The Kospi in Seoul added 0.2% to 2,408.60 after the government reported the South Korean economy grew by a stronger-than-expected 0.7% over the previous quarter in the three months ending in June.India's Sensex opened down 0.7% at 55,365.32. New Zealand retreated while Southeast Asian markets gained.
The major indexes are coming off solid gains last week following a mix of mostly better-than-expected reports on corporate profits.