SYDNEY (Reuters) - The dollar jumped to a 3-week top on Tuesday while Asian shares started cautiously as investors were hopeful of a positive outcome from a highly anticipated U.S.-Korea summit, which could set the stage for ending a nuclear stand-off on the Korean peninsula.
Japan's Nikkei .N225 climbed 0.8 percent to the highest in three weeks and South Korean shares added 0.1 percent. Australia's benchmark index was a tad firmer while New Zealand eased 0.3 percent .NZ50.
That left MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS a touch softer at 573.31.
The historic meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un is due to start at 0100 GMT in Singapore.
Ahead of the summit, Trump said the meeting could “work out very nicely” as the countries try to narrow differences on how to end a nuclear standoff on the Korean peninsula.
Many analysts said the bar was pretty low for what will be deemed a successful summit, given the past failures in talks with North Korea.
“This seems to be the first step on the road in what is going to be a long drawn out process,” said Ray Attrill, head of forex strategy, National Australia Bank, Sydney.
“If there appears to be a genuine intent on both sides to use this summit as a platform for a serious negotiation of a peace treaty, I guess that’s what success would look like today,” he said.
“Nobody is expecting a peace treaty today, that is being overly optimistic. But if this turns out to be a complete failure there might
