Asia-Pacific stocks are higher as investors wait for China’s trade data for June

SINGAPORE – Asia-Pacific stocks were higher in trading on Tuesday morning as investors waited for the release of China’s trade data for June.

The Nikkei 225 in Japan gained 0.75% in morning trading while the Topix index rose 0.72%. South Korean Kospi climbed 0.6%.

In mainland China, the Shanghai composite gained 0.12% while the Shenzhen component gained 0.288%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 0.75%.

Australian stocks advanced as the S & P / ASX 200 rose 0.52%.

The largest MSCI index of Asia-Pacific equities ex-Japan traded up 0.48%.

On the economic data front, China is expected to release its trade data for June at 11:00 a.m. HK / SIN on Tuesday.

Overnight in the United States, the major Wall Street indices hit record closing highs.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 126.02 points to 34,996.18 while the S&P 500 gained about 0.35% to 4,384.63. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.21% to 14,733.24.

The US dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 92.214 as it struggled to return to levels above 92.7 seen last week.

The Japanese yen was trading at 110.35 per dollar, still weaker than the sub-110 levels seen against the greenback last week. The Australian dollar changed hands at $ 0.7481, above the levels of around $ 0.745 seen yesterday.

Oil prices were higher on the morning of trading hours in Asia, as international benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.19% to $ 75.30 a barrel. US crude futures were up 0.19% to $ 74.24 a barrel.