Originally published by CMC Markets
Positive leads from Europe and the US could see a buoyant Asia Pacific trading session today. PMIs across the continent showed ongoing expansion in Europe, and solid jobs numbers and company reports lifted the US dollar and North American exchanges. Copper rallied despite the dollar strength, although gold and oil remain weak.
Futures markets are pointing to an opening rise for stocks, with the Hang Seng set to bounce hardest. Trading across the region may be boosted by lower local currencies, and the yuan rate set today will be closely watched. Pressure on precious metals and energy markets could weigh on resource heavy exchanges.
The potential for further rhetorical exchanges on trade may contain investor enthusiasm. The imposition of $60 billion in tariffs by China authorities last week appears proportionate. However White House tweets claiming an upper hand for the US over the weekend risk another round of confidence sapping exchanges.
The RBA is widely expected to maintain interest rates at current levels at its monthly meeting on Tuesday. The release of its Statement on Monetary Policy on Friday could overshadow the meeting statement. Trade data from China on Wednesday comes into focus as analyst look for any tangible impacts of the conflict so far.