Sunrise over the Bund river district on November 02, 2023 in Shanghai, China.
James D. Morgan Getty Images News | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets are set to open higher on Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street after new labor market data boosted investor confidence in the US economy and eased recession concerns after a sharp market sell-off earlier in the week.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 were at 7,722, higher than their last close of 7,682.
Japan Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a strong opening, with the futures contract in Chicago at 35,860 and the pair in Osaka at 35,700 compared to the previous close of 34,831.15.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng futures index is at 17,147, higher than the HSI’s last close of 16,891.83.
Earlier this week, global equities and currencies tumbled after US employment data fueled fears of a recession and investors began to let go if they “did the trade.”
Investors will be looking forward to China’s consumer price index and producer price index for July. A Reuters poll of analysts expected China’s CPI to rise 0.3% year-on-year, compared with a 0.2% rise in the previous month. Reuters economists also forecast a 0.9% decline in China’s PPI.
Overnight in the US, the S&P 500 advanced 2.3%, closing at 5,319.31 and posting its best day since November 2022. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 683.04 points, or 1.76%, to 39,446.49. The Nasdaq Composite added 2.87%, ending at 16,660.02.
Initial filings for unemployment insurance were lower than anticipated last week, countering other indications of a weakening labor market. Initial filings for jobless benefits came in at 233,000 last week, down 17,000 from the previous week and lower than the Dow Jones estimate for 240,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday, offering the market some relief amid signs that job growth is slowing.
—CNBC’s Hakyung Kim and Jesse Pound contributed to this report.
