Japan’s Nikkei 225 has been the top performer this year, among large economy stock indexes in Asia and many believe that stocks in the region have more room to run in 2024.
Marco Bottigelli | Moment | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mostly set to decline after the Nasdaq Composite fell nearly 2.8% overnight — posting its worst day since December 2022.
The tech-heavy index slid 2.77% to end at 17,996.92 as investors continued to favor rate-sensitive stocks over big tech names amid optimism on possible rate cuts following Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s caution on keeping rates higher for longer.
Over in Asia, investors await trade data out of Japan.
Economists polled by Reuters expect exports from Japan to have risen 6.4% year on year in June, slower than the 13.5% growth seen in the previous month. Imports are expected to have grown 9.3% year on year last month, compared to 9.5% in May.
Japan’s trade deficit is predicted to narrow from 1.2 trillion yen, or $7.7 billion, to 240 billion yen.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 futures pointed to a weaker open for the market, with the futures contract in Chicago at 40,330 and its counterpart in Osaka at 40,250 compared to the previous close of 41,097.69.
Australia will release employment data later in the day.
Futures for Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 stood at 7,986, lower than their last close of 8,057.9.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures were at 17,685, lower than the HSI’s last close of 17,739.41.
Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 243.60 points, or 0.59%, to end at 41,198.08. This is the first time the index closed beyond 41,000. The broad S&P 500 shed 1.39%, with the information technology and communication services industries being the weakest performers in the session.
—CNBC’s Alex Harring and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
