This is CNBC’s live blog covering Asia-Pacific markets.
Asia-Pacific markets are set for a mixed open ahead of Japan’s corporate inflation figures for February, as well as trade data from the Philippines.
Japan’s corporate inflation rate for January is expected to come in at 0.5%, according to a Reuters poll.
Investors will also be keeping an eye on inflation figures out of India as well as the U.S. later Tuesday, which could give a clue as to when the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.
In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 rebounded and gained 0.22% in early trade.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index looks to continue its gains, with futures at 16,700, pointing to a stronger open compared to the HSI’s close of 16,587.57.
In contrast, Japan’s Nikkei 225 is set to extend losses, with the futures contract in Chicago at 38,350 and its counterpart in Osaka at 38,180 against the index’s last close of 38,820.
Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes ended the session mixed as the tech rally continues to cool, with both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite seeing a second straight negative session and falling 0.11% and 0.41%, respectively.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend, adding 0.12%.
— CNBC’s Sarah Min and Alex Harring contributed to this report.
With sentiment and positioning elevated and valuations adequately reflecting good news in the market, UBS believes a correction could be ahead.
“The market looks more susceptible to pullbacks, although we don’t believe investors should lose sight of the bigger picture,” the bank’s chief investment office wrote to clients Monday.
The team said investors should stay neutral on U.S. equities, noting that being invested in line with long-term targets make sense given the “many positive drivers still in place.”
Healthy economic growth and lower inflation are two reasons why the market has performed so well, the firm said. The third reason is artificial intelligence, which the team said has created “fertile soil for risk on moves.”
— Alex Harring
Oil prices were mixed Monday as traders awaited a new round of February inflation data and reports on the global crude outlook from OPEC and the International Energy Agency this week.
The West Texas Intermediate contract for April lost 8 cents, or 0.10%, to settle at $77.93 a barrel. The Brent contract for May added 13 cents, or 0.16%, to settle at $82.21 a barrel.
U.S. crude and the global benchmark fell 2.45% and 1.76%, respectively, last week on tepid demand in China and comments from the IEA that the market should be well supplied this year.
“WTI rejection of $80 a barrel has some wondering whether the move is over,” Phil Flynn, an analyst at the Price Futures Group, wrote in a Monday note.
— Spencer Kimball
Stocks whose performance is tied to the price of bitcoin rose on Monday after the cryptocurrency climbed to another all-time high.
Crypto exchange Coinbase advanced 3.5%. Bitcoin proxy Microstrategy jumped 9% after the company purchased another roughly 12,000 bitcoins for more than $821 million in cash, according to a filing.
Miners were mixed, however. Marathon Digital lost 3.75% and CleanSpark fell 4%. Meanwhile, Iris Energy gained 2.6% and Riot Platforms was flat. These were some of the biggest stock market gainers in February. All but CleanSpark, one of the lower-cost operators of the group, have turned lower for March as investors digest the upcoming Bitcoin halving event, when mining companies’ revenue will be slashed.