MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1 per cent in early trade
Domestic equity markets are likely to start the week on a positive note on encouraging global cues. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) Nifty rose 67 points in early trade, and shares elsewhere in Asia gained ahead of a busy earnings week and amid chatter that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) may announce further stimulus steps. The SGX Nifty futures were last seen trading at 9,208, up 67 points, at 7:30 am. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1 per cent in early trade and Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark gained 1.1 per cent.
Meanwhile, oil prices fell on Monday on signs that worldwide oil storage is filling rapidly, raising concerns that production cuts will not be fast enough to catch up with the collapse in demand from the coronavirus pandemic.
Brent - the global benchmark for crude oil - fell by 33 cents, or 1.5 per cent, to $21.11 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) - the US benchmark - was down by $1.22, or 7.2 per cent, at $15.72 a barrel.
Wall Street rallied on Friday, led higher by Apple and Microsoft as investors finished a turbulent week of trading and some states prepared to relax coronavirus-related lockdowns. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1.11 per cent and Nasdaq Composite added 1.65 per cent.
This will be a truncated week of trading for the domestic markets on account of the Maharashtra Day holiday on May 1.
