Australia

Australian shares are set to open slightly higher, after tech stocks lead gains on Wall Street.

ASX futures were up 0.03% or 3 points as of 8:00am on Tuesday, suggesting a slightly higher open.

U.S. stocks were mostly higher, led by a 4.4% rise in Alphabet shares, after a Bloomberg report that Google's Gemini artificial-intelligence engine could be used in Apple's iPhone.

The DJIA rose 0.2%, or 75 points, to 38790, the S&P 500 gained 0.6% to 5149 and the Nasdaq climbed 0.8% to 16103.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil was up 1.9% to US$86.93 a barrel, while gold was up 0.2% at US$2,160.36.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was unchanged at 3.86% while the 10 Year yield was down at 4.11%. US Treasury notes were flat, with the 2 Year yield unchanged at 4.73% and the 10 Year yield up at 4.32%.

The Australian dollar hit 65.54 US cents down from its previous close of 65.55. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was down at 98.22.

Asia

Chinese shares ended higher amid positive sentiment following the release of economic data. Activity data was stronger than expected for industrial production and investment, while retail sales was in line with expectations, HSBC analysts said in a research note. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 1.0% to 3084.93, the Shenzhen Composite Index was 1.6% higher and the ChiNext Price Index added 2.25%. Among major stocks, CATL rose 5.5% after strong earnings. BYD advanced 4.1% and SMIC added 2.8%. Decliners included Midea Group, down 2.6%, and Gree Electric Appliances, which dropped 1.3%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.1% to close at 16737.12, reversing early losses. Market focus was on China economic data for January-February, including industrial output and retail sales. There were some positive surprises, showing "some encouraging stability in economic conditions," IG market analyst Yeap Jun Rong says in an email. Among the gainers, JD Health International added 6.6% and Alibaba Health Information Technology closed 4.5% higher. China Resources Beer climbed 4.55%, after its 2023 net profit rose due to higher beer sales. The Hang Seng Tech Index closed 1.25% higher at 3594.22.

Japanese stocks ended higher, led by gains in electronics and real-estate stocks, as the yen gave up some of its recent gains ahead of the Bank of Japan's policy outcome due Tuesday. Lasertec gained 6.0% and Sumitomo Realty & Development climbed 5.0%. The 10-year Japanese government bond yield fell 3 basis points to 0.755% following a recent ascent on expectations for the BOJ's potential shift away from its ultralow interest rate policy. The Nikkei Stock Average rose 2.7% to 39740.44. Investors are focusing on any monetary policy-related news flows.

India shares ended higher, led by steel and auto stocks. Tata Steel spearheaded the gains, rising 5.7%. Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors were up 3.0% and 2.75%, respectively. Among individual gainers, Torrent Power closed 2.4% higher after winning a INR36.5 billion contract for a wind-and-solar hybrid project. KPI Green Energy added 5.0% after securing a solar-power project in Maharashtra. Meanwhile, Infosys led the losses, dropping 2.0%. Tata Consultancy Services lost 1.7% and Lupin was down 1.6%. The benchmark Sensex closed 0.1% higher at 72748.42. Investors are eyeing a Fed meeting this week, as well as a host of other central bank decisions and their implications.

Europe

The STOXX Europe 600 Index was down 0.86 point or 0.17% 503.94, the CAC 40 Index slipped 16.21 points or 0.20% to 8148.14, while the DAX ended flat at 17932.68.

The FTSE 100 index closed Monday down 0.06% at 7722 points, falling from its eight-month high reached last week, mainly dragged by consumer goods heavyweight Unilever and spirits maker Diageo. Phoenix Group led the fallers, slipping 4.5% after reports that the pension firm will set aside GBP70 million to cover the cost of reducing customer charges, followed by Vodafone and BT Group, down 3.6% and 3.6% respectively. Among the top risers, British American Tobacco shares closed up 2.5% after starting a GBP1.6 billion share buyback.

North America

U.S. stocks were mostly higher, led by a 4.4% rise in Alphabet shares, after a Bloomberg report that Google's Gemini artificial-intelligence engine could be used in Apple's iPhone.

The DJIA rose 0.2%, or 75 points, to 38790, the S&P 500 gained 0.6% to 5149 and the Nasdaq climbed 0.8% to 16103.

Apple shares rose 0.6% and Nvidia gained 0.7%. Tesla gained 6.3%, its largest increase since 11 September.

Attention will turn to the Fed later this week as the central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates steady at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting on Wednesday.