· A gauge of global stock markets rose for a seventh straight day in choppy trading on Thursday after hints of progress in the U.S.-China trade dispute, pushing bond yields off lows hit earlier on the heels of new stimulus measures put forth by the European Central Bank.
Wall Street equity indexes were buffeted in early trading, moving to early highs and then quickly paring gains on conflicting reports about whether Trump administration officials had considered offering a limited trade deal to China.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 46.02 points, or 0.17%, to 27,183.06, the S&P 500 gained 8.71 points, or 0.29%, to 3,009.64 and the Nasdaq Composite added 24.79 points, or 0.3%, to 8,194.47.
“Markets are still on the trade war seesaw today,” said David Carter, chief investment officer at Lenox Wealth Advisors in New York. “We had some good news on trade which is why markets are up, but the seesaw may drop on any signs of failure.”
Stocks have drawn support from signs of a thaw in tensions between the world’s two largest economies, including China’s announcement of some tariff exemptions on Wednesday.
Ahead of in-person talks, the United States welcomed China’s pledge to buy agricultural goods, though the threat of tariff hikes remained.
Chinese importers made their largest U.S. soybean purchases since at least June, traders told Reuters.
· Stocks in Asia edged up Friday morning as investors digest a series of developments overnight from the U.S.-China trade front as well as the European Central Bank (ECB).
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 0.42% as shares of index heavyweights Fast Retailing and Softbank Group jumped 2.15% and 1.45%, respectively. The Topix index was largely flat.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.21% higher as majority of the sectors advanced.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index shed 0.16%.
Markets in China and South Korea are closed on Friday for holidays.
Reference: CNBC
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