Asian shares inched up on Tuesday as traders awaited U.S. retail sales data and more corporate earnings to gauge the health of the world's biggest economy, with markets remaining focused on a likely U.S. rate cut by the end of the month.

Investors were relieved by encouraging Chinese economic data on the previous day, though broad pressure across global business and investment from Sino-U.S. trade frictions and slowing world growth reinforced expectations of policy easing by major central banks.

Early in the Asian trading day, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.04%.

Source : Reuters