SHANGHAI, August 1 — Asian shares rose this morning, following gains on Wall Street, as a report of attempts to renew talks between the United States and China eased trade war fears, but investors will be keeping a close eye on data due today.

Global markets inched higher yesterday, helped by a Bloomberg report that the US and China were seeking to resume trade talks to defuse the battle over import tariffs.

"Solid US data helped boost risk sentiment; however it was the news that Mnuchin and Liu He are speaking again that sparked a bigger risk rally," ANZ analysts said in a note, referring to the US Treasury secretary and the Chinese vice premier.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.43 per cent to 25,415.19, the S&P 500 gained 0.49 per cent to 2,816.29 and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.55 per cent to 7,671.79.

But a later Bloomberg report that the US plans higher tariffs on US$200 billion (RM808.92 billion) in Chinese imports underscored the volatility of US-China trade relations.

In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.1 per cent in early trade, while Japan's Nikkei stock index gained 0.5 per cent. S&P E-mini futures were up a hair at 2818.

Tech shares across the region may get a boost after Apple Inc. beat Wall Street expectations for its quarterly results thanks to robust sales of its top-of-the-line iPhone X. . The company's shares rose 3.4 per cent to US$196.80 in after-hours trade.

Investors will also be watching data from around the region, including manufacturing activity numbers from China, for indications of the outlook for the global economy.

Data from Australia showed a slowdown in manufacturing activity in July, with the Commonwealth Bank/Markit purchasing managers index at its lowest level in nearly two years.

But Australian shares still moved higher this morning, gaining 0.2 per cent, taking support from higher commodity prices.

Policy meetings of the US Federal Reserve this morning and the Bank of England on Thursday will also keep some investors on the sidelines, although the US central bank is expected to keep rates unchanged.

The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes was at 2.9542 per cent, compared with its US close of 2.964 per cent yesterday.

The two-year yield, which rises with traders' expectations of higher Fed fund rates, touched 2.6654 per cent compared with a US close of 2.669 per cent.

The dollar was flat against the yen at 111.81.

The euro was also flat on the day at US$1.1689, while the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, gained 0.1 per cent to 94.547.

US crude dipped 0.6 per cent at US$68.33 a barrel. Brent crude gave up 0.3 per cent to US$73.99 per barrel.

Spot gold edged up less than 0.1 per cent at US$1,223.93 per ounce. — Reuters