Asian equities rise ahead of US-China trade talks, FX largely flat

New Straits Times

3 hours ago

SINGAPORE/HONG KONG: Most emerging Asian equities rose on Monday ahead of the crucial trade talks between the US and China in London later in the day, while regional currencies remained subdued against a steady dollar.
Top trade representatives from Washington and Beijing will meet for talks aimed at defusing the high-stakes trade disputes between the world's two largest economies, which have flared up in recent weeks.
The second round of meetings comes four days after US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke by phone, their first direct interaction since Trump's January 20 inauguration.
"The US and China will be holding formal talks around hashing out their differences and trying to reach a trade deal has provided some positive sentiment to markets in the region", said Khoon Goh, head of Asia research at ANZ.
MSCI's gauge of Asian emerging market equities rose as much as 1 per cent to its highest level since October 2024. Taiwan stocks rose 0.7 per cent and Singapore shares added 0.2 per cent. Chinese stocks gained 0.3 per cent.
South Korean shares climbed 1.7 per cent, supported by post-election policy optimism under newly elected President Lee Jae-myung. The benchmark index had gained 4 per cent last week.
A positive session on Wall Street on Friday, driven by better-than-expected US jobs data, helped ease concerns over a potential US recession and is lifting investor confidence today, Goh added.
Data showed that nonfarm payrolls increased by 139,000 jobs last month fewer, than the 147,000 jobs added in April but exceeding the 130,000 gain forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.
Regional currencies were largely flat, with the Singapore dollar rising 0.2 per cent and the Malaysian ringgit falling 0.2 per cent. The dollar slipped 0.1 per cent, retracing part of the 0.5 per cent gain it posted on Friday, as initial enthusiasm over a strong US employment report gave way to caution ahead of key US-China trade talks.
Analysts at Nomura expect markets to remain choppy and range-bound through summer amid ongoing tariff uncertainties. "Market attention remains fixated on the expiration of the 90-day pause on tariffs (subject to court rulings)". Markets in Indonesia were closed for a public holiday.