- Futures pointed to opening declines for stocks in Japan and Australia.
- Investors await the release of China's loan prime rate, set to be out around 9:30 a.m. HK/SIN, with a cut expected by traders and analysts surveyed by Reuters.
Asia Pacific stocks were set to slip at the Monday open as investors awaited the release of China's benchmark lending rate.
Futures pointed to a lower open for Japanese stocks. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 19,615 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 19,590. That compared against the Nikkei 225's last close at 19,897.26.
Shares in Australia were also set to see declines. The SPI futures contract was at 5,464, as compared to the S&P/ASX 200's last close at 5,487.50.
Investors await the release of China's loan prime rate, set to be out around 9:30 a.m. HK/SIN, with a cut expected by traders and analysts surveyed by Reuters.
Coronavirus developments will likely also continue to be watched, with more than 2.3 million infected globally while at least 164,000 lives have been taken, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University. Stocks globally had gotten a boost late last week after a report said patients with severe virus symptoms were quickly recovering after using remdesivir, a Gilead Sciences drug.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 99.793 after crossing the 100 mark last week.
The Japanese yen traded at 107.62 per dollar after touching levels below 107.4 in the previous trading week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6348 following turbulent trading last week that saw it rising to levels above $0.64 and falling below $0.63.
What's on tap for Monday:
- China: People's Bank of China publishes new loan prime rates at 9:30 a.m. HK/SIN
Source: cnbc.com
