Asia shares brace for China data, euro pressure

By Wayne Cole

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Asian share markets were mostly softer on Monday ahead of a slew of Chinese economic news, while political uncertainty in Europe soured risk appetites and kept the euro on the defensive.

Analysts expect annual growth in China's retail sales picked up to 3.0% in May, from 2.3%, with some upside risk thanks to holidays that month. Industrial output is seen slowing a little to 6.0%, from 6.7%, with growth in urban investment steady.

There was also talk the People's Bank of China (PBOC) could cut a key lending rate by 10 basis points, in part due to surprisingly weak bank lending data released on Friday.

That made for a cautious start, and MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was a fraction softer.