Asia markets slip as Japan real wages fall for 26th straight month; China stocks drop for fifth day

Asia-Pacific markets opened mixed on Monday as investors awaited key economic data from the U.S. and China later this week, while election results in France overnight signaled a hung parliament.

France's left-wing New Popular Front coalition on Sunday unexpectedly thwarted a far-right advance, clinching the largest number of seats but falling short of an absolute majority in a parliamentary run-off vote.

Investors await the U.S. consumer price index reading, due Thursday stateside, to assess the Federal Reserve's interest rate path, while China's inflation figures on Wednesday will signal the state of the country's economic recovery.

Central bank decisions from South Korea, New Zealand and Malaysia will also be announced this week, although no changes are expected, according to a Reuters poll of economists.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was down marginally, while the broad-based Topix was 0.36% lower. The losses come as Japan's real wages fell for a 26th straight month.

Data from the country's ministry of health, labor and welfare indicated that real wages fell 1.4% year on year in May, although nominal wages rose 1.9% to 297,151 yen ($1,850). May's number was also the fastest wage increase in 11 months.

South Korea's Kospi was trading close to the flatline, and the small-cap Kosdaq climbed 0.86%. Shares of heavyweight Samsung Electronics gained 0.46%, despite the company's largest union slated to begin a three day strike on Monday.

Reuters reported the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), which has about 28,000 members, has demanded that the company improve its performance-based bonus system and give workers an extra day of annual leave.

It is not immediately clear how many workers will join the strike, but the union's poll found