Nikkei 225, Kospi, Nifty 50

Asia-Pacific markets were set to open higher on Monday, with investors closely eyeing Japan equities after the country’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party elected staunch conservative Sanae Takaichi as its new leader on Saturday, positioning her to become the country’s first female prime minister.

Given the government’s economic policy of a “high-pressure economy,” Takaichi is likely to ask the Bank of Japan to maintain its accommodative monetary policy, Crédit Agricole CIB wrote in a note over the weekend following the results, adding that she would be open to a 25 basis points rate hike by the BOJ by January 2026.

“A Takaichi administration, recognising that the current economy is still weak, is expected to completely shift policy direction to a new approach (complete overhaul) that seeks to expand investment and demand through public-private partnerships,” CA-CIB’s note said.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index was set for a higher open. Its futures contract in Chicago was trading at 48,105 against the index’s last close of 45,769.50.

Australia’s ASX/S&P 200 was poised for a higher open, with its futures contract trading at 9,050 against the index’s Friday’s close of 8,987.4.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was set to open slightly higher with its futures contract trading at 27,153, against the index’s previous close of 27,140.92.

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Chinese and South Korean markets were closed for holidays.

Last Friday in the U.S., the three major averages closed higher. The S&P 500 retreated from a record on Friday but held on to solid weekly gains despite a U.S. government shutdown dragging on for a third day, ticking up just 0.01% at 6,715.79.

The Nasdaq Composite declined 0.28% to settle at 22,780.51. The Dow Jones Industrial Average outperformed, trading higher by 238.56 points, or 0.51%, to finish at 46,758.28. The Russell 2000 also popped 0.72% to close at 2,476.18.

— CNBC’s Pia Singh and Sean Conlon contributed to this report.