Asia markets set for a mixed start to the year, Japan recovers from New Year’s Day earthquake

Asia-Pacific markets were set for a mixed start to the year, with Japan still recovering from a powerful earthquake that struck its central region on New Year’s Day.

Nearly 100,000 people were ordered to evacuate, and at least one person was reported dead from the quake, which had a preliminary magnitude of 7.6.

The region will see private factory activity surveys out from S&P Global for China, Australia, and South Korea, as well as fourth-quarter gross domestic product reading from Singapore.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slipped marginally in early trade, while futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index stood at 17,160, pointing to a stronger open compared with the HSI’s close of 17,047.39.

Japan’s markets are closed until Jan. 4.

In the U.S., stock futures were flat in overnight trading Monday as the market prepares to kick off the new year.

Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were little changed, while S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures traded marginally above the flatline. Markets were closed Monday for New Year’s Day.

— CNBC’s Yun Li contributed to this report