Asia markets set to rise as China factory activity assessed; Japan business sentiment on deck

Asia-Pacific markets are set to rise Monday as investors assess China’s business activity for February and await economic data out of Japan.

China’s National Bureau of Statistics data showed that manufacturing activity expanded in March, with the purchasing managers index registering a reading of 50.8, compared to Feburary’s reading of 49.1.

Economists polled by Reuters expected a reading of 49.9, which still represented a contraction in the sector.

Separately, Japan will release its Tankan survey for the first quarter on Monday. The survey gauges business sentiment, which the Bank of Japan monitors when formulating monetary policy.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 is set for a stronger open, with the futures contract in Chicago at 40,705 and its counterpart in Osaka at 40,550 against the index’s last close of 40,369.44.

Australian and Hong Kong markets are closed for Easter Monday.

On Good Friday in the U.S., February’s inflation rose in line with expectations from Dow Jones, with the the personal consumption expenditures price index excluding food and energy increasing 2.8% on a 12-month basis and up 0.3% from a month ago.

Including volatile food and energy costs, the headline PCE reading showed a 0.3% increase for the month and 2.5% at the 12-month rate, compared to estimates for 0.4% and 2.5%.

— CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed to this report.