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SINGAPORE – Asia Pacific stocks were expected to trade mixed at the open as investors await the release of Australian retail sales figures for August.
Futures pointed to a higher open for stocks in Japan, and the Tokyo Stock Exchange is expected to come back online after a halt in trading Thursday following a hardware failure. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 23,360 while its counterpart in Osaka was at 23,330. That compares with the Nikkei 225’s latest close at 23,185.12.
Meanwhile, Australian stocks looked poised to fall. The SPI futures contract was at 5,841.0, compared to the last close of the S & P / ASX 200 at 5,872.90.
Australian retail sales data for August will be released around 9:30 am HK / SIN on Friday.
Markets in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and India are closed on Fridays for holidays.
Overnight in the United States, Wall Street stocks closed higher. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 35.20 points, or 0.1%, to 27,816.90. The S&P 500 was up 0.5% 17.80 points to 3,380.80, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.4% to 11,326.51.
The limited movement in stocks on Wall Street came as investors watched developments over the coronavirus stimulus talks, and a deal remains elusive after another day of discussions between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi , and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
Coins
The US dollar index, which tracks the dollar against a basket of its peers, was at 93.711 after falling from levels above 94.4 this week.
The Japanese yen was trading at 105.56 per dollar, in a trading week that has seen it at levels below 105.4 and above 105.6 against the dollar. The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.7181, following its rise this week from levels below $ 0.707.
Here’s a look at what’s available:
- Australia: Retail sales data for August at 9:30 a.m. M. HK / SIN
