SINGAPORE – Stocks in Japan should rise on Monday as several markets in North Asia closed for the New Year holidays.
Futures indicated a higher open for Japanese stocks. The Nikkei futures contract in Chicago was at 29,725 while its Osaka counterpart was at 29,590. This is compared to the Nikkei 225’s last closing price at 29,520.07.
Japan’s preliminary pressure on fourth quarter gross domestic product is expected around 7:50 a.m. HK / SIN.
Australian stocks rose in morning trade, with the S & P / ASX 200 up around 0.8%.
The markets in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and the USA are closed on Mondays for public holidays.
Currencies
The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, stood at 90.422 after weakening against the 91.2 handle earlier this month.
The Japanese yen was trading at 104.98 per dollar, weaker than below 104.8 against the greenback last week. The Australian dollar was trading at $ 0.7766 after rising below $ 0.772 last week.
Here’s a look at what’s on tap:
- Japan: Preliminary gross domestic product data for the fourth quarter at 7:50 a.m. HK / SIN
