Cautiously Higher In Asia; Chinese Developers Outperform On Growing Policy Support

Most major Asia-Pac equity indices sit modestly higher on a positive lead from Wall St., with Chinese and South Korean benchmarks bucked the broader trend of gains.

• The CSI300 deals 0.7% softer at writing, with limited gains in the heavyweight consumer staples sub-index (+0.5%) unable to counter weakness in industrials and consumer discretionary equities.
• China-based property developer shares outperformed on the Hong Kong and Chinese bourses, with the Hang Seng Mainland Properties Index (+4.7%) and the CSI300 Real Estate Index (+2.6%) surging amidst signs of strengthening policy support for the sector, with the latter hitting 6-week highs earlier in the session.
• The ASX200 is 0.2% firmer, with the energy (+3.4%) and financials (+1.0%) sub-gauges offsetting weakness in high-beta healthcare (-0.9%) and tech equities (S&P/ASX All Tech Index: -0.4%)
• The Hang Seng deals 0.5% firmer at writing, with the properties (+2.0%) sub-gauge contributing the most to gains.
• E-minis deal 0.1% firmer apiece at writing, having stuck to the top of their respective ranges established on Wednesday.