* European spreadbetters expect higher start
* China's indication of more stimulus supports stocks
* Euro still tentative ahead of euro zone CPI
* Copper on track for biggest monthly drop since June
By Shinichi Saoshiro
TOKYO, March 31 (Reuters) - Asian stocks edged higher in a cautious start to the week on Monday, with investors holding out hope that China would take steps to stimulate its economy.
European shares were also set for a higher start, with financial spreadbetters expecting Britain's FTSE 100 to open up by 9-11 points, Germany's DAX by 34-43 points and France's CAC 40 by 9-12 points.
U.S. stock futures rose 0.4 percent, pointing to modest gains on Wall Street later in the day.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan tacked on 0.4 percent, after rising to a three-week high on Friday on heightened speculation Beijing will launch new spending measures and on reduced tensions in Ukraine.
Tokyo's Nikkei stock average rose 0.7 percent.
China's Premier Li Keqiang on Friday sought to reassure jittery global investors that Beijing was ready to support the cooling economy, saying the government had the necessary policies in place and would push ahead with infrastructure investment.
China stimulus hopes were unable to shore up all equity markets in Asia, however, with South Korea's KOSPI trading nearly flat.
"It's difficult for the market to solely move on talks about stimulus with no concrete plan to back them up," said Kim Yong-goo, an analyst at Samsung Securities in Seoul.
The euro lingered near a one-month low hit against the dollar on Friday after an unexpected drop in Spanish and German inflation bolstered expectations the European Central Bank could further ease monetary policy as early as Thursday.
"It all depends on whether the ECB views the recent slowdown as a temporary pullback or a deeper problem. Given the abundance of policymakers talking about the possibility of negative rates, we believe they are growing more concerned about growth and inflation," Kathy Lien, managing director at BK Asset Management in New York, wrote in a note to clients.
The euro was already under pressure after suggestions of more ECB action last week from Germany - whose policymakers have in the past repeatedly voiced concerns about unorthodox monetary easing.
The focus now turns to euro zone inflation figures due later in the global session in light of Friday's weak Spanish and German inflation data.
The euro was little changed at $1.3753 after hitting a one-month low of $1.3704 on Friday.
Turkey's lira hit a two-month high against the dollar after Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan declared victory in local polls that had become a referendum on his rule, stirring hopes months of political turbulence would ease. The lira brushed 2.165, its strongest against the greenback since late January.