Eli Lilly (LLY.N) to acquire Merida Biosciences for up to $2.875 bln in cash; deal expected to close in Q4.

South Korea's KOSPI turned positive to close up 0.15% after earlier falling as much as 3.6%. Samsung Securities equities sales trader Roy Lim said a pension fund made clear late-session purchases, concentrated in technology names, net buying about KRW120 billion within roughly 20 minutes.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent on Sunday rejected worries that rising U.S. debt is weighing on the Treasury market, saying “first, I’m not sure where the alleged turbulence in the bond market is,” and noting U.S. Treasuries have outperformed other major bond markets year-to-date. He said the U.S. is better positioned than many developed peers because growth continues despite large deficits, and that recent yield increases largely reflect energy-price and Iran-conflict-driven inflationary pressure he expects to fade over time; he added higher yields also signal confidence in the U.S. economy. Bessent dismissed concerns from some central bank policymakers that the Treasury’s unexpected increase in repo operations distorted markets or broke usual, predictable Treasury market practices.