Stocks in Asia Advance on Trade-Deal Optimism: Markets Wrap

(Bloomberg) — Stocks in Asia opened higher Thursday after a report the U.S. and China are getting closer to a deal that would avoid tariffs due to kick in later this month. Treasury yields stabilized after gains.

Shares opened higher in Sydney, Tokyo and Seoul, while equity futures in Hong Kong were higher after the S&P 500 Index climbed overnight. News that negotiators are nearing an agreement on the amount of tariff relief in a phase-one U.S.-China accord helped risk assets after concerns earlier in the week when President Donald Trump downplayed the urgency of a deal. New Zealand’s dollar edged up after the country’s largest lenders were told to increase capital buffers.

The U.S. expects a deal with China to be completed before the next tranche of American tariffs are due to kick in on Dec. 15, according to people familiar with the talks. Trump said Wednesday discussions with China are going very well.

“If we do just muddle along and there aren’t the tariff increases on December 15 we’ll probably see something of a stable stock-market environment,” Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco Ltd., told Bloomberg TV. Any negative trade news “could be the spoiler for what otherwise would be a fairly solid month for stocks.”

Elsewhere, oil preserved a rally after Energy Information Administration data showed inventories fell more than expected. The pound was near a seven-month high against the dollar as traders stepped up bets for a Conservative victory in next week’s election.

Here are some key events coming up this week:

• Germany releases factory-order data for October on Thursday.
• Saudi Aramco’s initial public offering is scheduled to be priced on Thursday, with Riyadh looking to raise more than $25 billion.
• Friday brings the U.S. jobs report, where estimates are for non-farm payrolls to rise by 190,000 in November.

These are the main moves in markets:

Stocks

• Japan’s index rose 0.6% as of 9:02 a.m. in Tokyo.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.9%.
• South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.5%.
• futures earlier rose 0.8%.
• Futures on the S&P 500 were little changed. The underlying gauge climbed 0.6% on Wednesday.

Currencies

• The yen remained at 108.85 per dollar.
• The held at 7.0527 per dollar following its advance the prior session.
• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed.
• The euro was little changed at $1.1082.
• The pound was at $1.3109.

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries held at 1.77% after gaining three basis points.
• Australia’s 10-year yield added three basis points to 1.09%.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude dipped 0.1% to $58.40 a barrel.
• Gold held at $1,475.34 an ounce.

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