Asian Stock Market: Renews six-month high as ASX200, Nikkei lead gainers, S&P500 Futures poke yearly top

• Asia-Pacific shares remain firmer amid defense of easy-money policy.
• RBA’s surprise inaction, Japanese officials’ defense of BoJ’s ultra lose monetary policy favor equity bulls.
• NZX50 bucks the trend amid strong New Zealand housing data ahead of Wednesday’s NZ jobs report.
• S&P500 Futures trace Wall Street’s gains, yields grind lower ahead of US ISM Manufacturing PMI, JOLTS Job Openings.

Market sentiment remains mildly positive in Asia as traders cheer hopes of witnessing no more interest rate hikes from the top-tier central banks amid early Tuesday. Additionally favoring the risk profile could be the headlines about China's stimulus and the upbeat performance of the Western markets the previous day. However, fears of the US-China tension and hawkish comments from the Fed official prod the optimists ahead of the top-tier US data.

While portraying the mood, MSCI’s index of the Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rises to the highest level since February, printing mild gains of late, whereas Japan’s Nikkei jumps 0.75% intraday to prod the early July peak at the latest. It’s worth noting that a softer Japanese Unemployment Rate and comments from policymakers defending the easy-money practices favor the nation’s equity benchmark.

Further, Australia’s ASX 200 also jumps around 0.70% on a day as the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) keeps the benchmark interest rates unchanged for the second consecutive week.

Additionally, fresh fears of the US-China tussle, as Beijing restricts drone exports in retaliation to the US tech and trade war tactics by citing the “national security” measures, prod the optimists. Also weighing on the sentiment could be the downbeat China PMI as Caixin Manufacturing PMI for July fails to trace its upbeat NBS counterpart while declining to 49.2 for July from 50.5 prior, versus 50.3 market forecasts, marking the lowest level since January. With this, the share traders in Shanghai and Hong Kong struggle to print major gains.

Elsewhere, S&P500 Futures seesaw near the yearly high, up 0.15% intraday near 4,610 at the latest, while the US 10-year and two-year Treasury bond yields edge lower after declining in the last two consecutive days. That said, the Dollar Index (DXY) renews a three-week high while the commodities pare recent gains with mild losses and the Antipodeans also drop as the greenback braces for the US ISM Manufacturing PMI for July and JOLTS Job Opening for June.

In doing so, the market players also justify the hawkish comments from Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago President Austan Goolsbee.

Moving on, US earnings and the clues for Friday’s Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) will entertain equity traders.

Also read: Forex Today: Markets remain optimistic, RBA decision next