Sunrise in the Bund area of Shanghai, China, on November 2, 2023.
James D. Morgan | James D. MorganGetty Images News | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to open higher on Friday, tracking gains on Wall Street, after new labor market data boosted investor confidence in the U.S. economy and eased recession fears after a sharp market selloff earlier this week.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index futures were at 7,722 points, higher than the previous closing point of 7,682 points.
Japanese Nikkei 225 Index Futures opened stronger, with the Chicago futures contract at 35,860 points and the Osaka futures contract at 35,700 points, compared with the previous closing price of 34,831.15 points.
Hong Kong Hang Seng Index futures were at 17,147 points, higher than the Hang Seng Index’s last closing point of 16,891.83 points.
Global stocks and currencies tumbled earlier this week after U.S. jobs data revived recession fears and investors began unwinding “carry trade” positions in the yen.
Investors are paying attention to China’s consumer price index and producer price index in July. A Reuters poll of analysts expects China’s CPI to increase by 0.3% year-on-year, compared with a 0.2% increase last month. Reuters economists also predict that China’s PPI will fall by 0.9%.
Overnight, the U.S. S&P 500 index rose 2.3% to close at 5,319.31 points, its best single-day performance since November 2022. The Nasdaq rose 2.87% to close at 16,660.02 points.
Initial jobless claims fell below expectations last week, contrasting with other signs of labor market weakness. The U.S. Labor Department reported on Thursday that 233,000 people filed for initial unemployment benefits last week, down 17,000 from the previous week and below the Dow Jones estimate of 240,000, adding to markets amid signs of slowing job growth. got some comfort.
—CNBC’s Hakyung Kim and Jesse Pound contributed to this report.
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