SYDNEY- Japanese shares led US and European futures higher on Monday as AI hype juiced up the tech sector ahead of a week brimming with central bank meetings, major economic data and corporate earnings.
Chip stocks have been on a roll since Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC) upgraded its profit outlook last week on booming demand for high-end chips used in applications.
That helped send the Nikkei up more than 1.5 percent to a fresh 34-year peak and brought gains for January to almost 9 percent .
Chipmakers, including Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices were among the beneficiaries of the AI-driven rally.
That should sharpen attention on results from Intel and IBM this week, along with Tesla Netflix Lockheed Martin and a host of others.
Nasdaq futures extended their rally with gains of 0.6 percent , while S&P 500 futures firmed 0.2 percent . EUROSTOXX 50 futures jumped 0.8 percent and FTSE futures 0.3 percent .
Yet MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan still eased 0.45 percent , having already taken a drubbing last week.
The index has been pressured by weakness in China’s markets which hit five-year lows last week and sparked speculation state funds were having to support stocks.
Beijing still seems reluctant to deliver aggressive stimulus with the central bank again skipping on a rate cut in its market operations on Monday.
The Bank of Japan is also expected to keep policy super-easy at a meeting on Tuesday, helped by a second month of slowdown in consumer prices.
The general assumption among analysts is the central bank will want to see if the spring wage rounds deliver strong growth before deciding whether to nudge toward tightening.
