Australia

Australian shares are set to rise at the open, as US investors look to inflation and rates decisions.

ASX futures were up 0.2% or 13 point as of 8:30am on Tuesday, suggesting a higher open.

U.S. stocks climbed for a third-straight day Monday, with the three main indexes closing at fresh 52-week highs, according to FactSet data, as investors turned their attention to Tuesday's inflation report, and Wednesday's Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.

The S&P 500 gained 18.02 points, or 0.4%, to 4,622.43, according to preliminary closing data from FactSet. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 157.06 points, or 0.4%, to 36,404.93. The Nasdaq Composite rose by 28 points, or 0.2%, to 14,432.49.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil rose 0.3% to US$76.10 a barrel while gold was down 1.2% to US$1,981.40.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was up at 4.04% while the 10 Year yield was also up at 4.34%. US Treasury notes edged higher, with the 2 Year yield at 4.71% and the 10 Year yield at 4.24%.

The Australian dollar hit 65.66 US cents down from the previous close of 65.79. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was up at 98.28.

Asia

Chinese shares closed higher, recovering from a weak start after CPI and PPI data over the weekend. Sentiment may have been boosted by the Politburo saying last Friday it will take a proactive fiscal policy approach to ensuring economic stability, says Sonija Li, head of retail research at Maybank. China has set a 2024 GDP growth target of around 5%, higher than the average forecast. Investors are watching for key data due Friday, including retail sales and industrial output. Coal and auto-parts sectors were among the top gainers. China Shenhua Energy added 1.6% and Jiangsu Hengli Hydraulic rose 1.3%. Beverage stocks led the losses as Shanxi Xinghuacun Fen Wine slid 2.55%. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.7% at 2991.44, below the key 3000 level. The Shenzhen Composite Index rose 0.95% and the ChiNext Price Index gained 1.25%.

Hong Kong shares closed lower as investors digested China's weaker-than-expected CPI and PPI data released over the weekend. The data reflect weak Chinese domestic demand and businesses' poor pricing power, which will pressure both revenues and margins, Saxo market strategist Redmond Wong says. Chinese sportswear brand Li Ning led declines after saying it plans to buy a business tower in Hong Kong, dropping 14%. The tech sector also fell, with JD.com down 6.25% and Meituan losing 3.6%. Baidu declined 3.2%. Lenovo was among the top performers, rising 3.1%. Henderson Land Development and Sinopharm Group were up 1.65% and 1.6%, respectively. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 0.8% to 16201.49. The Hang Seng Tech Index shed 1.1%.

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.5% to close at 32791.80, tracking Wall Street's gains Friday. JPY weakness, which typically benefits the overseas earnings of Japanese exporters when repatriated to Japan, also helped boost the local equity market. The best performers on the benchmark index included electric utility companies such as Tokyo Electric Power, which climbed 15%, and Chubu Electric Power, which added 5.5%. Other top advancers were Keisei Electric Railway, which rose 5.15%, and Toyota Industries, which was up 4.6%. USD/JPY was at 145.60, up from 143.93 as of Friday's Tokyo stock-market close. The 10-year JGB yield was up a half basis point at 0.775%.

India's Sensex set another record close after crossing the 70000 level for the first time earlier in the session. Investors are awaiting key U.S. economic data and the Fed's interest-rate decision later this week, ICICI Direct analysts say in a research note. The benchmark index ended 0.15% higher at 69928.53. UltraTech Cement led gains, rising 3.0%. Nestle India added 1.3% and Power Grid Corp. of India was up 1.05%. Banks and finance stocks led losses, with Axis Bank and Bajaj Finserv down 1.3% and 0.4%, respectively. Bajaj Finance lost 0.2%.

Europe

European stocks gained as investors ponder potentially significant economic events and data later this week. The Stoxx Europe 600 and CAC 40 advanced 0.3% and the DAX climbed 0.2%, with property shares and semi-conductor makers among the biggest risers, though the FTSE 100 dropped 0.1%. Oil stocks fell as Brent crude retreated 0.4% to $75.55 a barrel. UK unemployment, Germany ZEW economic sentiment and US inflation data are due Tuesday, the US Federal Reserve will give its latest interest-rate verdict Wednesday and the European Central Bank and Bank of England will announce rate decisions Thursday. "Markets are currently pricing in a March rate cut from the ECB, one of five next year," OANDA analyst Craig Erlam writes.

The FTSE 100 index closed down 0.1% on Monday, at 7,544.89 points, on the back of weakness in the basic-resources sector. The latest inflation numbers from China showed signs that the world's second-biggest economy is slipping into deflation, CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson says in a market comment. "These concerns over weak demand are weighing on the likes of Glencore, Rio Tinto and the rest of the mining sector, as iron ore prices decline," he says. Anglo American shares saw a bit of a rebound after last week's drops prompted some takeover speculation, he adds.

North America

U.S. stocks climbed for a third-straight day Monday, with the three main indexes closing at fresh 52-week highs, according to FactSet data, as investors turned their attention to Tuesday's inflation report, and Wednesday's Federal Reserve decision on interest rates.

The S&P 500 gained 18.02 points, or 0.4%, to 4,622.43, according to preliminary closing data from FactSet. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 157.06 points, or 0.4%, to 36,404.93. The Nasdaq Composite rose by 28 points, or 0.2%, to 14,432.49.

For the Dow, Monday marked the highest close since Jan. 5, 2022, just one day removed from its all-time closing high.

Notably, an index of semiconductor stocks finished at a fresh high on Monday, even as Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) and other megacap-tech names lagged in the red. Shares of Broadcom Inc. (AVGO) rose 9% to a record $1,029.24 a share, according to preliminary data.