[MARKET ANALYSIS] Asia-Pac stocks trade mixed after geopolitical headlines dominated newsflow over the weekend

APAC Stocks: Mixed Asia-Pac stocks are mixed after geopolitical headlines dominated weekend newsflow and amid thinned conditions to start the week due to Sports Day in Japan and the quasi-holiday stateside for Columbus Day. ASX 200: +0.8% Index is led higher by gains in key local industries with outperformance in mining, materials, financials, resources and tech, while telecoms, real estate, energy and the consumer sectors lag. KOSPI: -2.9% Suffers amid pressure in the tech heavyweights, while sentiment is also not helped by North Korea's latest missile launch, which prompted the National Security Council to convene an emergency meeting. Hang Seng & Shanghai Comp: Hang Seng +0.2% / Shanghai Comp -0.2% Chinese markets are mixed after the PBoC's improved liquidity efforts, while China also released draft rules establishing nationwide requirements for automotive parts remanufacturing and recently agreed to ‘halve’ hybrid car exports to the EU in a landmark deal. US Equity Futures: +Positive Mildly extended on Friday's advances, while US stock markets are set to open later today despite the Columbus Day federal holiday. European Equity Futures +0.7% Indicate a positive cash market open with Euro Stoxx 50 futures up 0.7% after the cash market closed with gains of 0.8% on Friday,