HITACHINAKA, JAPAN – APRIL 16: Nemophila flowers are in bloom at Hitachi Seaside Park on April 16, 2020 in Hitachinaka, Japan. (Photo by Tomohiro Ohsumi/Getty Images)
Tomohiro Ohsumi | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets are set to rise ahead after U.S President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy sounded cautiously optimistic over a deal for the U.S. debt ceiling.
“We still have some disagreements, but I think we may be able to get where we have to go,” Biden said at the start of a highly anticipated meeting with McCarthy on Monday at the White House.
Asian markets will be watching private surveys on Australia and Japan’s manufacturing and services activity released today, as well as Singapore’s inflation numbers for April.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 looks to extend gains for an eighth day, with the futures contract at 31,240 in Chicago and 31,190 in Osaka against its last close at 31,086.82.
In Australia, futures for the S&P/ASX 200 were at 7,288, higher than the index’s last close of 7,263.3, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index looks set for a rebound. Futures for the HSI stood at 19,744 compared to the HSI’s close of 19,678.17.
Overnight in the U.S., the three major indexes ended the session mixed, with the Nasdaq Composite rising 0.5% and finishing at its highest close and highest intraday level since August.
Separately, the S&P 500 gained 0.02% on Monday, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.42%.
— CNBC’s Samantha Subin and Jesse Pound contributed to this report
