Singapore city skyline on September 18, 2016.
Rustam Azmi | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Australian shares opened higher as other Asian markets prepared to resume trading after the New Year holiday.
Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.17% at the open, while Chicago's Nikkei 225 futures traded at 39,605, below the index's last close of 39,894.54.
Traders in Asia will also look to Singapore's GDP in the fourth quarter. GDP is expected to grow by 3.3% compared to last year, according to a Reuters poll.
Other economic indicators available include China's Caixin Manufacturing PMI for December. Economists expect manufacturing activity to reach 51.7, slightly higher than 51.5 in November, according to LSEG data.
Markets in Japan remained closed on Thursday and Friday for the bank holiday.
US stock futures were little changed as traders prepared for a new year, after all three major indexes posted double-digit annual gains.
Futures contracts are linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average It was flat, while S&P 500 futures increased by 0.06% Nasdaq 100 futures Advanced 0.17%
The S&P 500 posted annual gains of more than 20% for the second year in a row, jumping 23.31%, building on a 24.2% gain in 2023. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 12.88% last year while the Nasdaq rose 28.64%.
CNBC's Christina Scheider-Burke contributed to this report.
