Reuters
- Traders sent stocks higher on Friday on renewed hopes of de-escalation in the US-China trade war.
- Donald Trump and Xi Jinping are set to meet on Saturday in a high-stakes encounter that could determine whether the US follows through on its threat to extend tariffs to virtually all Chinese goods.
- "I think we have a very good chance" of doing "something," Trump told reporters at the G-20 summit in Japan.
- View Markets Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Traders sent stocks higher on Friday on renewed hopes of de-escalation in the US-China trade war.
President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping are set to meet on Saturday in a high-stakes encounter that could determine whether the US follows through on its threat to extend tariffs to virtually all Chinese goods. "I think we have a very good chance" of doing "something," Trump told reporters at the G-20 summit in Japan, according to Bloomberg.
However, he warned that he hasn’t agreed to delaying further tariffs on Chinese goods for six months while the two sides talk, as some reports suggested.
"It remains to be seen whether the public displays of chest-thumping from both sides since May will eventually lead to handshakes and smiles on Saturday," said Han Tan, market analyst at FXTM. He warned "the road ahead isn’t all plain sailing, given the tremendous gulf that still remains between both governments, with tit-for-tat tariffs still in place."
Investors shouldn’t expect too much from the meeting, analysts say.
"Probably the most optimistic outcome this weekend is a renewal of trade talks…which at least delays the hike in tariffs, even if it solves nothing longer term," said Michael Every, senior Asia-Pacific strategist at RaboResearch.
Here’s the market roundup as of 10:11 a.m. (5:11 a.m.):
- Asian indexes fell with the Shanghai Composite down 0.6%, the SZSE Component down 0.7%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng down 0.3%.
- European equities have gained with Germany’s DAX up 0.5%, the Euro Stoxx 50 up 0.3%, and Britain’s FTSE 100 0.2%.
- US stocks are poised for a positive open. Futures underlying the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were up by about 0.3%, while Nasdaq futures were up 0.1%.
- Oil prices have fallen with West Texas Intermediate crude down 0.3% at $59.30, and Brent crude down 0.4% at $65.40.
- Bitcoin, up 0.6% at $11,860, has rallied after falling in early trading.
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Source: Business Insider – tmohamed@businessinsider.com (Theron Mohamed)