By Gina Lee

Investing.com – Asia Pacific stocks were mostly up on Tuesday morning, ending November on a high note as indicated improved factory activity.

China’s was up 0.30% by 9:15 PM ET (2:15 AM GMT) and the was up 0.21%.

Hong Kong’s fell 0.92%.

Japan’s rose 0.99%, with October’s employment data showing that the was at 1.15 and the was down to 2.7%. Also, I saw a 1.1% increase in month-on-month.

South Korea’s was down 0.52%.

The Australian dollar rose 1.26% with the currency contracting 12.9% per month and rising 0.5% in October. The third quarter’s total was $17.06 billion, or AUD23.9 billion.

Data released earlier in the day showed that China’s was at 50.1, while the was at 52.3, in November. Later in the week, PMIs and Caixin will be released.

Investors will continue to keep an eye on the omricron COVID-19 variant, which scientists are currently evaluating. U.S. President Joe Biden advised against panicking regarding the new variant of COVID-19 and indicated that no lockdowns are necessary. Pharmaceutical firms, such as Moderna (NASDAQ:) Inc. is already adapting vaccines.

“We’ll get a new variant, we’ll get new waves but the market, and we all as investors, see how that might play out,” Thornburg Investment Management president Jason Brady told Bloomberg.

“I’m much more interested in inflation and potentially rising rates causing some of the market leaders of 2020 and 2021 to falter a little bit more.”

Already, the international travel industry has suffered from this new strain. Supply chains could be disrupted and inflationary pressures may rise.

U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Monday that omicron poses risks to both sides of the Fed’s mandate for stable prices and maximum employment. But he didn’t specify what actions he would take or suggest an increase in asset tapering.

Powell and Janet Yellen will be testifying at a Senate Banking Committee hearing later that day. They will be retesting at the House Financial Services Committee one day later.

Investors will also be waiting on a host of U.S. data, starting with the late part of the morning. On Wednesday, the, as well as the, are due. The U.S. employment report including the on Friday is next.