SYDNEY : Asian shares edged up on Monday while bond markets held their breath ahead of an update on the U.S. rate outlook from the world's most powerful central banker, and a jobs report that could decide if the next hike needs to be super-sized.
Japan's Nikkei climbed 1.0 per cent to a three-month top, while South Korean stocks added 0.6 per cent helped by a softer reading on inflation. Markets have become resigned to more rate rises from the Federal Reserve but are hoping it will stick with quarter-point moves rather than switch back to half-point hikes.
"Payrolls are due on the final day when Fed officials can publicly discuss monetary policy, but CPI will be released during the blackout period," he added."If we end up in a situation where the jobs and inflation numbers present a conflicting view, the outcome of the Fed meeting could become even harder to predict.
"No change is expected but we should not completely rule out the chance of Kuroda going out with a bang via the BoJ announcing another tweak to the 0 per cent YCC tolerance band," noted analysts at NAB in a note.
Finland and Sweden already recession