* Spreadbetters see strong opening for European bourses
* Investors focus on Fed's two-day meeting beginning on Tuesday
* Concerns about strong dollar, Fed hike impact weigh on Wall St
* Euro marks fresh 12-year low on divergent policy expectations
* US crude oil plumbs 6-year low, pressured by global supply glut
By Lisa Twaronite
TOKYO, March 16 (Reuters) - Asian shares drifted higher on Monday after a downbeat session on Wall Street kept sentiment in check, while the euro recovered from a fresh 12-year low touched on the divergent monetary policy paths between the United States and the euro zone.
Financial spreadbetters expected a stronger day ahead in Europe, with Britain's FTSE 100 seen opening 26 points higher, or up 0.4 percent; Germany's DAX likely to open 61 to 63 points higher, or up 0.5 percent; and France's CAC 40 called opening 15 to 20 points higher, or up 0.4 percent.
"European markets, with the exception of the FTSE100, continued to be juiced by the European Central Bank's easy monetary policy, which started last Monday, with bond yields continuing to decline to record lows," Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said in a note.
Oil prices continued to tumble, with U.S. crude dropping more than 2 percent at one point to a six-year low amid oversupply fears. The International Energy Agency said on Friday that the global supply glut is growing and U.S. production shows no sign of slowing.
U.S. crude shed about 1.2 percent to $44.31 a barrel, while Brent crude lost about 0.6 percent to $54.32.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was a few ticks higher, erasing early losses and remaining above last week's seven-week trough.
Chinese shares outperformed, rising to five-year-highs, with
the CSI300 index and the Shanghai Composite Index both up more than 2 percent after Premier Li Keqiang said that Beijing had plenty of scope to adjust policies in order to boost the world's second largest economy. ID:nL3N0WH04H]
"Investors have nothing to fear now because the message is that if economic growth continues to slow, there will be more stimulus measures," said Tian Weidong, analyst at Kaiyuan Securities in Xi'an in northwest China.
Friday's weak U.S. inflation data failed to derail expectations that the Federal Reserve will tighten monetary policy, and U.S. shares slumped on concerns about the impact of higher rates and a stronger dollar on corporate profits. The S&P 500 marked its third straight losing week, though it stood just 3 percent below its record high set early this month.