Asian stocks track US stock futures higher, shares in NZ, Australia cheer strong data

• Asian shares flirt with record tops amid vaccine, stimulus hopes.
• Fed shows readiness for further stimulus, US Congress members haggle over details.
• Bulls also ignore US-China tussle, virus while observing aid package headlines.
• Aussie jobs, upbeat MYEFO favor ASX 200, New Zealand GDP propels NZX 50.

Asian equities, ex-Oceania, wobble near all-time high amid broad optimism concerning the US coronavirus (COVID-19) stimulus and virus vaccine. The mood also takes clues from the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) readiness for additional Quantitative Easing (QE), if needed, not to forget receding odds of no-deal Brexit.

In doing so, the market players pay little heed to the US-China and the Canberra-Beijing tension. While the US Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer urged President-elect Biden to not ease tariffs on China, Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg said trade issues with Beijing are very serious. Also challenging the bulls could be one more day of delay in the much-awaited US stimulus and the COVID-19 woes in the Northern Hemisphere.

Against this backdrop, MSCI’s index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan refreshes the record high while Japan’s Nikkei 225 rises 0.13% intraday to 26,793 by press time.

Stocks in China, Hong Kong, Indonesia and India marked mild upside moves amid a lack of major directives from home. However, Australia’s ASX 200 and New Zealand’s NZX 50 have their reasons to surge.

Australia’s November month employment report flashed surprisingly welcome signs, followed by upbeat economic predictions in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO), to favor a 0.85% upside of the Aussie index. On the other hand, New Zealand’s Q3 GDP marked a V-shaped recovery with a 14% QoQ jump.

It should be noted that the oil refreshes the highest levels since March whereas the US dollar remains downbeat near the April 2018 bottom.

Looking forward, global market players are more interested in taking part in the year-end celebrations with eyes on the US stimulus and Brexit news.

Also read: S&P 500 Futures jostle with cautious Fed, US-China tension to cheer stimulus, vaccine hopes