HK/China Equities Outperform, Higher US Futures Limit Losses Elsewhere

HK and China related equities have outperformed so far today. The HSI is up over 2%, the China Enterprise Index near a 3% gain. Elsewhere the focus has been on the rebound in US futures, with eminis and Nasdaq futures up +1.6%, as the US authorities seek to limit the fallout from the SVB collapse, with a number of backstops now in place ahead of Monday's US open. This has helped regional markets pare losses or climb into positive territory for today's session.

• China and HK shares have likely benefited from the NPC announcement over the weekend that current PBoC Governor Yi Gang would continue to serve in the post. It had been widely expected that he would retire. The Commerce and Finance Ministry positions also maintained the status quo. This should give the market some comfort of policy continuity.
• Mainland shares have lagged HK moves, but are still up near 0.90% for the CSI 300.
• Elsewhere, the picture is more mixed. Japan's Nikkei 225 is down around 1.5% at this stage, although away from lows for the session. Banking and finance related names have been a saw of weakness. The Kospi (+0.45%) and Taiex (0.10%) have fared better.
• The ASX 200 is down 0.50%, while Singapore and Malaysian markets are off by 0.7% and 0.9% respectively.