In a separate report the National Australia Bank (NAB) monthly business survey posted another strong result in April, with both business conditions and confidence improving - pointing to ongoing strength in business activity in the near-term. The report says, “The business conditions index rose 2 points, to +14 index points, which is well above the long-run average (+5) and its highest level since early 2008. Meanwhile, Business confidence came more into line with business conditions in April, hitting its highest level since 2010 (up 7, to 13 index points).”

Tuesday's session brought Australian Retail Sales figures. The trend estimate was relatively unchanged (0.0%) in March 2017. This follows a rise of 0.1% in February 2017 and a rise of 0.1% in January 2017. The seasonally adjusted estimate fell 0.1% in March 2017. This follows a fall of 0.2% in February 2017 and a rise of 0.5% in January 2017. In trend terms, Australian turnover rose 2.5% in March 2017 compared with March 2016.

There were no data releases from Australia on Wednesday, but from China CPI and PPI figures were released. Chinese consumer prices rose unexpectedly in April compared to a month ago, a sign the recent surge in producer inflation was beginning to trickle down to the consumer level. Beijing’s official consumer price index (CPI) edged up 0.1% from March, after falling 0.3% the previous month, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a report on Wednesday. Analysts in a median estimate called for no change compared to March. Compared to a year ago, CPI inflation climbed 1.2%, following a 0.9% increase the previous month.

A separate gauge of factory-gate prices slowed sharply in April. The annual producer price index (PPI) rose 6.4% following a 7.6% gain the previous month. The PPI inflation index surged 7.8% in the 12 months through February, the fastest since the financial crisis. After years of contraction, producer prices have been dragged higher by fiscal policies and efforts to reduce the country’s overcapacity issues. PPI inflation has been largely driven by mining and heavy industry, with raw materials registering double-digit percentage gains.

This week markets will be looking at:

China's Industrial Production (Monday 4:00)

Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes (Tuesday 3:30)

Employment Change/Unemployment Rate (Thursday 3:30)