The perceived potential for deeper Chinese...>

STOCKS: The perceived potential for deeper Chinese monetary easing, coupled with

a continued pullback in COVID-19 deaths in some of the European hotspots

generally supported risk appetite in the first Asia-Pac session of the week,

even with Sino-U.S. tensions elevated and questions over how far up the U.S.

political food chain the virus had reached, given a confirmed case amongst VP

Pence's aides, which triggered self-isolation amongst senior U.S. medical

officials and some rumours re: Pence himself.

- U.S. equity index futures managed to punch through Friday's highs after

trading on the backfoot early on, building on the positive lead from Wall St. on

Friday.

- Japanese equities were supported by the potential for deeper domestic fiscal

stimulus.

- Nikkei 225 +1.5%, Hang Seng +1.9%, CSI 300 +0.2%, ASX 200 +1.5%.

- S&P 500 +14, DJIA futures +158, NASDAQ 100 futures +56.