Asian stocks edge up, US futures erase losses on China trade talks
Asian stocks edged up and US equity-index futures erased losses Friday after China said it's evaluating possible trade talks with the US.
ADVERTISEMENT The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.1% after China's Ministry of Commerce said it's evaluating negotiations. Japanese shares gained 1.1% on positive comments from Japan's chief trade negotiator. Futures contracts for the S&P 500 reversed earlier losses to gain 0.2%.
News of trade talks between China and the US helped reverse weak sentiments after disappointing results from Apple Inc. and Amazon Inc. had hurt sentiments early Friday. Strong tech earnings had largely driven optimism on Wall Street along with expectations that trade deals will offer many countries a reprieve from the highest tariffs unveiled April 2. Traders will turn their attention to the US jobs report that releases Friday, the last piece of significant data this week.
'Results from Amazon and Apple are a bit of a damper on the markets,' wrote Kyle Rodda, senior market analyst at Capital.com. 'The final hurdle for the week is the non-farm payroll data.'Apple shares slipped in late US trading after it reported sales from China declined more than anticipated in the latest quarter, overshadowing otherwise solid results. Meanwhile, Amazon gave an operating income forecast that missed expectations when markets closed, pushing shares lower in post-market trading. Microsoft Corp. and Meta Platforms Inc. jumped on upbeat earnings, while a report of the US weighing a potential easing of restrictions on Nvidia Corp.'s sales to the United Arab Emirates pushed the chip-maker's shares higher during Thursday's session.
ADVERTISEMENT A dollar index climbed Thursday on reports that President Donald Trump's administration reached out to China to start tariff talks.In Asia, the yen slipped against the dollar as the Bank of Japan said it will take longer than it previously thought to hit the inflation target, leading traders to pare bets on further interest-rate hikes.
ADVERTISEMENT Meanwhile, Japan's Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said that the country's US Treasury holdings could be a card in its trade negotiations with the US, in response to a question asking whether Japan's stance of not easily selling the holdings could be seen as a negotiation tool.'It does exist as a card,' said Kato, speaking on a TV Tokyo program Friday, when asked if Japan's stance of not selling holdings could be a negotiation tool. 'Whether or not we use that card is a different decision.'
ADVERTISEMENT In commodities, gold dropped to a two-week low while crude oil fell 0.7%.
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