Asian stocks look set to climb and U.S. equity futures rallied Thursday after robust earnings from technology heavyweights. The dollar retreated with bond yields after the Federal Reserve signaled it wasn’t ready to consider scaling back pandemic support.

Futures pointed higher in Australia and Hong Kong, while Japan is closed for a holiday. Nasdaq 100 contracts outperformed after Apple Inc. crushed revenue estimates and Facebook Inc. reported gains in sales and users. Alphabet Inc. rose to a record after its results showed a surge in ad sales.

SG:

Capitaland announced on Wednesday that it will be investing 3.66 billion yuan (S$757.7 million) to acquire its first hyperscale data centre campus in China, the world's second-largest data-centre market and the largest in the Asia-Pacific. The potential acquisition is via the purchase of 100 per cent equity interest in two companies registered in China, the property giant said in a statement.

Keppel DC Reit and telco M1 have signed a non-binding term sheet to establish a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to own and operate M1's network assets, the companies said in a joint media release on Wednesday. M1 will be responsible to establish the SPV, which will acquire M1's current mobile, fixed and fibre assets for S$580 million in cash. The consideration will be funded through external financing of S$493 million and an S$87 million investment by Keppel DC Reit, in return for a combination of debt securities and preference shares to be issued by the SPV. While M1 will retain 100 per cent of the SPV's ordinary shares, M1 and Keppel DC Reit will be equally represented on the board of the SPV.

IREIT Global has, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Fit 2, entered into a conditional sale agreement to acquire Decathlon's properties in France for 110.5 million euros (S$176.8 million). The portfolio comprises 27 retail properties with a gross lettable area of 95,477 square metres. Upon completion, all properties will be leased-back to the sporting goods retailer. The deal comprises a committed occupancy of 100 per cent with weighted average lease expiry by gross rental income of 10 years, and an option to break after six years, said the manager on Wednesday.

US:

Google's results, showing a surge in ad sales related to travel and retail, offered a glimpse of online spending in a post-pandemic world: businesses are boosting digital marketing to capture a public eager to resume something resembling normal life again. Google parent Alphabet said first-quarter revenue, excluding payments to distribution partners, came in at US$45.6 billion, pummeling Wall Street estimates. The company also unveiled a big new share buyback, sending the stock up as much as 5.5 per cent to an intraday record high of US$2,416.98.

Spotify unveiled plans on Tuesday for podcast subscriptions, countering a similar initiative from Apple but offering a better deal than its US rival by allowing creators to keep all revenue for a limited time. The updated podcast platform for the United States, set to expand internationally in coming months, lets podcasters make episodes available only to subscribers. Taking advantage of the tool will cost podcasters nothing for the next two years, meaning they get all subscription revenue, Spotify said in a post.

Boeing reported a smaller quarterly loss on Wednesday as increased 737 MAX jet deliveries reflected a cautious rebound in air travel from the coronavirus pandemic, though the embattled US planemaker took a charge on its Air Force One presidential aircraft programme. But optimism in a resurgent US domestic travel market is offset by growing concerns over Covid variants in India and elsewhere, clouding the industry's recovery.

Source: SGX Masnet, The Business Times, Bloomberg, Channel NewsAsia, Reuters, PSR