(Bloomberg) -- Asian equities look set to drift higher after US stocks advanced ahead of inflation data due later Thursday. Bitcoin rose after US regulators approved exchange-traded funds tied to the digital currency.

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Futures pointed to further gains for Japanese equities, which have touched fresh three-decade highs this week. Australian contracts also rose, while those for Hong Kong benchmarks were little changed. Gains in Japanese equities partly reflect a stronger yen, which weakened again Wednesday against the dollar.

US stocks rose. The S&P 500 closed 0.6% higher, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 gained 0.7%. The moves extended a rebound in tech following heavy selling last week and come ahead of fourth-quarter earnings season, which broadly kicks off with bank results Friday.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission approved exchange-traded funds that directly invest in Bitcoin, a day after the agency’s X account was hacked and a fake post said the funds had been approved. The digital currency rose above $46,000 in early Asian trading.

As equities rallied, Treasuries pulled back. The 10-year yield inched two basis points higher to above 4% all but the shorter end of the curve faced selling pressure. Yields on the policy-sensitive two-year note fell. Australian and New Zealand yields edged higher early Thursday.

Investors are gearing up for turbulent trading in the wake of the US consumer price data coming later Thursday. Bond traders have trimmed bets on gains for Treasuries this month, and the swaps market shows a lower chance of expected Fed cuts by March relative to pricing late last year.

Economists polled by Bloomberg expect year-over-year core inflation to fall to 3.8% in the December data from 4% in the prior month.

The data will likely fall “in line with consensus,” Matt Eagan, a portfolio manager for Loomis, Sayles & Company, said in a note. “Our expectations are for headline inflation to continue to cyclically bottom well below 3%, possibly to 2.5%, and for the Fed to then start cutting rates sometime over the next six months.”

Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said Fed officials need to see more signs of cooling in the economy before reducing interest rates, but noted current policy levels are adequate to bring inflation back to the central bank’s target.

In Asia, data set for release includes November trade figures for Australia, consumer confidence in Japan, while December new lending and M2 data for China could be released as soon as today. South Korea’s central bank will hand down a monetary policy decision.

Oil prices weakened on signs that rising US crude stockpiles will outweigh the effects of Red Sea tensions, which threaten to dent supply. West Texas Intermediate fell 1.2% Wednesday to $71 per barrel. Gold inched lower to around $2025 per ounce.

Key events this week:

• US CPI, initial jobless claims, Thursday

• China CPI, PPI, trade, Friday

• UK industrial production, Friday

• US PPI, Friday

• Some of the biggest US banks report fourth-quarter results, Friday

• Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari speaks, Friday

• ECB chief economist Philip Lane speaks, Friday

Some of the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• Nikkei 225 futures rose 1.2% as of 7:35 a.m. Tokyo time

• Hang Seng futures were little changed

• S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.2%

• The S&P 500 rose 0.6%

• The Nasdaq 100 rose 0.7%

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed

• The euro was little changed at $1.0971

• The Japanese yen was little changed at 145.65 per dollar

• The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1830 per dollar

Cryptocurrencies

• Bitcoin rose 1.1% to $46,470.87

• Ether rose 0.8% to $2,549.26

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced two basis points to 4.03%

• Australia’s 10-year yield advanced two basis points to 4.14%

Commodities

• Spot gold fell 0.3% to $2,024.41 an ounce

This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.

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