SINGAPORE — Stocks in Japan were set to trade higher at the open as investors in Asia-Pacific react to the Democrat Joe Biden’s defeat of incumbent Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential race, according to NBC projections.
Futures pointed to a higher open for Japanese stocks, with the Nikkei futures in Chicago at 24,425 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 24,360. That compared against the Nikkei 225’s last close at 24,325.23.
Shares in Australia edged higher in early trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 up around 0.9%.
Former U.S. vice president Biden won following his projected win in the states of Pennsylvania as well as Nevada, according to NBC News projections on Saturday. Still, Trump is refusing to concede the election, claiming it’s “far from over.”
On the economic data front, China’s exports surged 11.4% in October as compared to a year earlier, according to official statistics released over the weekend.
Meanwhile, on the coronavirus front, infections continue to surge stateside. The U.S. recently reported more than 126,000 new infections for two day in a row. Globally, the number of coronavirus infections crossed the 50 million mark on Sunday, according to Reuters.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 92.184 following a decline in recent days from levels above 93.1.
The Japanese yen traded at 103.24 per dollar after strengthening from levels above 104.3 against the greenback last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.7288 after last week’s rise from levels below $0.711.
Source: CNBC