Asia-Pacific stocks set to rise as Wall Street cheers U.S.-UK trade deal outline
Bruce Yuanyue Bi | The Image Bank | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were set to mostly climb Friday, tracking Wall Street gains after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the broad outline of a trade deal with the United Kingdom — the first since the U.S. paused sweeping "reciprocal" tariffs in April.
Specific details of the agreement remained unclear, and no official documents were signed during the Oval Office announcement.
"The final details are being written up," Trump said. "In the coming weeks we'll have it all very conclusive."
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 is set to open higher, with the futures contract in Chicago at 37,530 while its counterpart in Osaka last traded at 37,490, against the index's last close of 36,928.63.
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is set to rise, with futures standing at 8,216, up from the index's close of 8,191.7.
Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index stood at 22,732, slightly lower than HSI's last close of 22,775.92.
Investors in Asia will also be keeping an eye out for China's April trade figures.
U.S. stock futures hovered near the flatline as investors hope that the U.S.- United Kingdom trade deal framework signals more progress to come.
Overnight stateside, the three major averages closed higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 254.48 points, or 0.62%, to settle at 41,368.45. The S&P 500 rose 0.58% and closed at 5,663.94. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.07% to end at 17,928.14.
— CNBC's Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
The broad market index added 0.58% to close at 5,663.94, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.07% to end at 17,928.14. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 254.48 points, or 0.62%, and settled at 41,368.45.
— Pia Singh
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