Australia

Australian shares are set to open higher, after a mixed session on Wall Street.

ASX futures were up 0.2% or 14 point as of 8:30am on Monday, suggesting a higher open.

The S&P 500 edged lower, breaking a string of record high closes, while the Dow Industrials got a lift from American Express following earnings and an upbeat outlook for this year.

DJIA gains 60 points to a record 38109, while the S&P 500 loses 0.1% to 4890 and the Nasdaq slips 0.4% to 15455.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil rose 1.4% to US$83.55 a barrel while gold was down 0.1% to US$2,018.52.

In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds was unchanged at 3.89% while the 10 Year yield was also unchanged at 4.24%. US Treasury notes were up, with the 2 Year yield at 4.35% and the 10 Year yield at 4.14%.

The Australian dollar was unchanged at 65.71 US cents. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, was up at 97.94.

Asia

Chinese shares closed mixed amid cautious sentiment as investors wait for signs that Beijing will take stronger measures to support the economy. The biotech sector took a hit on concerns about a proposed U.S. bill that would restrict medical providers from business with some Chinese biotechnology companies. Wuxi AppTec and Pharmaron Beijing dropped 10% and 13%, respectively. Energy and property companies were among the stocks that rose. PetroChina advanced 6.4% and Poly Developments & Holdings climbed 3.2%. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index ended 0.1% higher at 2910.22, while the Shenzhen Composite Index was 0.7% lower at 1678.04.

Hong Kong shares closed lower, with Wuxi Biologics and WuXi AppTec leading declines as concerns arose following a proposed U.S. bill to restrict medical providers from business with certain Chinese biotechnology companies. Wuxi Biologics and WuXi AppTec fell sharply in afternoon trading, ending 18% and 16% lower, respectively. Lenovo Group slumped 9.9% amid concerns about PC demand. Among the gainers, Galaxy Entertainment rose 2.0% and PetroChina added 0.7%. The benchmark Hang Seng Index ended 1.6% lower at 15952.23. The Hang Seng Tech Index closed 3.75% lower at 3186.49.

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average fell 1.3% to close at 35751.07 on possible pre-weekend position adjustments and amid declines in U.S. stock-index futures that could undermine risk appetite. Losses on the benchmark index were led by electronics and tech names, with Renesas Electronics sliding 7.65%, Advantest slipping 5.45% and Ibiden losing 5.1%. Fujitsu General ended 0.8% lower after cutting its fiscal-year revenue and net profit forecasts. USD/JPY was at 147.73, compared with 147.80 as of Thursday's Tokyo stock market close. The 10-year JGB yield was down 3.5bps at 0.710%.

Indian shares closed lower, dragged by technology stocks. Tech Mahindra fell 6.1%, its largest one-day percentage loss in more than three years. The IT company reported weaker-than-expected 3Q earnings, and its near-term revenue growth momentum may slow, Axis Securities wrote in a note. HCL Technologies ended 1.5% lower and Infosys was down 0.2%. Among the gainers, NTPC rose 1.8% and ICICI Bank was up 1.1%. JSW Steel closed 0.5% higher after its 3Q net profit soared. SBI Life Insurance fell 2.1% after quarterly results. The benchmark Sensex closed 0.5% lower at 70700.67.

Europe

European shares rose after upbeat news from luxury goods and spirits companies. Luxury-goods houses advanced after better-than-expected results from LVMH, which gained 12%, while spirits companies also rose as investors reacted positively to outlook comments by Remy Cointreau, whose shares advanced 16%. The bounce in luxury and liquor stocks boosted the CAC 40 by more than 2%, while the Stoxx Europe 600 and FTSE 100 rallied more than 1% and the DAX rose 0.3%. Brent crude dropped 0.8% to $81.34 a barrel. The Dow also gained after US December PCE year-on-year core inflation came in at 2.9%, below the 3% expected. "This adds to the steady accumulation of evidence that the Fed's job on inflation is mostly done," Evercore analysts say.

The FTSE 100 closed the session 1.40% higher at 7,635.09 points. A brighter economic outlook, "helped by a rising oil price, strong U.S. personal spending, home sales rising the most in three years and a weaker-than-expected PCE index, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge," was behind the daily jump, IG analyst Axel Rudolph writes in a market comment. London's blue-chip index rose to a two-week high and recorded its biggest weekly gain since September, CMC Markets UK analyst Michael Hewson notes, attributing the rise to a broad-based rebound from its heaviest stocks.

North America

The S&P 500 edged lower, breaking a string of record high closes, while the Dow Industrials got a lift from American Express following earnings and an upbeat outlook for this year.

DJIA gains 60 points to a record 38109, while the S&P 500 loses 0.1% to 4890 and the Nasdaq slips 0.4% to 15455.

The major averages rose for the third straight week following a slow start to the year.

Economic data supported expectations that the Fed has been able to slow down inflation without sending the economy into recession. The central bank's preferred inflation gauge, the personal-consumption expenditures index rose 0.2% in December from the previous month.