• Asian stocks are set for a steady open as focus shifts to this week’s inflation reports from the US, Japan and China after mixed jobs and activity data on Friday capped a downbeat start to the year.
• Australian equities were little changed in early trading and contracts in Hong Kong point to a flat start, while Japanese markets are closed for a holiday. The dollar and US equity futures were steady after the S&P 500 rose 0.2% on Friday following reports that US jobs beat expectations but the service sector slowed.
• Last week ended as the worst for global equities since October as markets were rattled by a deluge of corporate issuance and the Federal Reserve indicated no rush to cut interest rates. Traders are now looking to the US inflation print this week as they cling to hopes for easing by March.