China trade figures, US jobs gains tipped to lift market

Australian shares are poised to open higher on Tuesday after better than expected US jobs data lifted optimism in the world's biggest economy and China's improved trade surplus allayed fears of a hard landing.

Regional equities rose on Monday across Asia, emboldened by the China import and export figures as well as evidence of faster growth by the Japanese economy in the first quarter.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was up 0.7 per cent and Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 0.3 per cent.

The Australian dollar inched up to US93.50¢ mid-afternoon after finishing at US93.39¢ in the final session of last week. The S&P/ASX 200 Index was closed but futures indicated a 0.3 per cent upswing when trading resumes on Tuesday from its last close of 5464 points.

The S&P 500 Index achieved a fresh record on Friday to 1949.44 points after the US economy added 217,000 jobs in May, more than economists expected, and the unemployment rate held firm at 6.3 per cent. US employment gains have totalled more than 200,000 for four months in a row. S&P 500 futures were unchanged on Monday.

China's trade surplus widened to a five-year high $US35.9 billion last month after a sharp drop in imports, official figures released on the weekend showed.