SINGAPORE — Stocks in Japan were set to trade higher at the open following an overnight bounce on Wall Street as optimism grew over the prospect of more stimulus.
Futures pointed to a higher open for Japanese stocks, with the Nikkei futures contract in Chicago at 26,800 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 26,780. That compared against the Nikkei 225’s last close at 22,687.84.
Japan’s trade data for November is expected to be out at around 7:50 a.m. HK/SIN on Wednesday.
Shares in Australia saw gains in early trade, with the S&P/ASX 200 gaining about 1%.
Investor focus on Wednesday will likely be on negotiations ongoing stateside surrounding Covid-19 relief, with the top four congressional leaders meeting Tuesday amid a rush to reach a deal.
Shares of Apple suppliers in Asia-Pacific will also be watched on Wednesday, following a Nikkei report that the Cupertino-based tech giant will increase iPhone production by about 30% in the first half of 2021.
In central bank developments, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to be dovish at the end of its meeting on Wednesday stateside, though it may note a brighter long-term outlook when it releases economic forecasts due to vaccine developments.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 337.76 points to close at 30,199.31. The S&P 500 snapped a four-day losing streak as it rose 1.3% on the day to 3,694.62. The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.3% to 12,595.06 — a new record closing high.
Currencies
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was last at 90.476 after seeing levels above 90.6 earlier in the week.
The Japanese yen traded at 103.62 per dollar, having seen levels around 104.1 against the greenback yesterday. The Australian dollar was at $0.7557 after trading at levels around $0.751 yesterday.
What’s on tap:
- Japan: Trade data for November at 7:50 a.m. HK/SIN
Source: CNBC