TOKYO: Asian shares crept higher and the dollar languished near multi-year lows on Tuesday as markets awaited a vote over US President Donald Trump’s landmark tax and spending legislation.
Global shares reached an intraday record on Monday on trade optimism, but a marathon debate in the Senate over a bill estimated to add $3.3 trillion to the United States’ debt pile weighed on sentiment. Japan’s Nikkei gauge of shares sank as much as 1.1% as the yen climbed.
Oil fell for a second consecutive session and gold advanced.
A vote on Trump’s sweeping tax-cut and spending bill had been expected during the Asian trading day on Tuesday, but debate raged on over a long series of amendments by Republicans and the minority Democrats.
Trump wants the bill passed before the July 4 Independence Day holiday.
As global trade negotiators scramble to get deals done before Trump’s tariff deadlines, investors are also anticipating key US labour market data on Thursday.
“Trade is front and centre this week, but alongside that, we’ve obviously got the fate of the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’, which is currently being debated in the Senate,” said Ray Attrill, head of FX strategy at the National Australia Bank.
Payrolls data later in the week “does have significant bearing, I think, on sentiment towards the potential timing of Fed rate cuts,” he added in a podcast.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5%, led by South Korea’s Kospi gauge , rising 1.8%. The dollar dropped 0.3% to 143.62 yen.
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The greenback slid 0.1% to $1.1794 against the European single currency and earlier touched $1.1798, the weakest since September 2021.
US crude dipped 0.4% to $64.86 a barrel, weighed by expectations of an OPEC+ output hike in August.
Spot gold rose 0.5% to $3,319.55 per ounce. Pan-region Euro Stoxx 50 futures were up 0.1% at while German DAX futures were up 0.2%.
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