SINGAPORE — Shares in Asia-Pacific looked set to rise at the Monday open, with investors watching Alibaba’s stock in Hong Kong following yet another development between affiliate Ant Group and billionaire Jack Ma.
Futures pointed to a higher open for Japanese stocks. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 29,790 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 29,800. That compared against the Nikkei 225’s last close at 29,683.37. Japan’s trade data for March is expected to be out at around 7:50 a.m. HK/SIN on Monday.
Meanwhile, shares in Australia also looked poised for a positive start. The SPI futures contract was at 7,071, against the S&P/ASX 200’s last close at 7,063.50.
Investors will watch Hong Kong-listed shares of Alibaba on Monday. This comes after Ant Group said in a tweet that a recent report by Reuters that the firm was looking at ways for Jack Ma to exit were “untrue and baseless.”
Reuters reported over the weekend that financial technology giant Ant is “exploring options” for Ma to divest his stake in the firm and “give up control,” citing “a source familiar with regulators’ thinking and two people with close ties to the company.”
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 91.597 after a recent decline from above 91.8.
The Japanese yen traded at 108.68 per dollar, stronger than levels above 109.2 against the greenback seen last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.772, having risen from below $0.768 last week.
Here’s a look at what’s on tap:
- Japan: Trade data for March at 7:50 a.m. HK/SIN
Source: CNBC