Asian markets advanced in early trading Friday following reassuring moves by central banks and as trade negotiations resumed between the U.S. and China.
Mid-level talks were held in Washington on Thursday for the first time in almost two months as U.S. and Chinese negotiators attempted to find common ground to pave the way for high-level talks scheduled for October. Reuters reported that the talks, which will end Friday, will focus mainly on agricultural issues, with sessions also scheduled for intellectual property and forced transfer of technology.
But White House adviser Michael Pillsbury, in an interview with the South China Morning Post, warned that if a trade deal is not reached soon, the U.S. could escalate its tariffs on Chinese goods to 50% or even 100%.
Meanwhile, the People’s Bank of China cut its one-year loan prime rate from 4.25% to 4.20%, as expected. That came after the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut interest rates for the second time this summer, and the Bank of Japan kept its monetary policy unchanged, though it hinted at further easing later in the year.
Japan’s Nikkei
rose 0.4% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index
advanced 0.2%. The Shanghai Composite
inched up 0.1% while the Shenzhen Composite
gained 0.3%. South Korea’s Kospi
ticked up 0.2%, while benchmark indexes in Taiwan
, Singapore
and Indonesia
were little changed. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200
rose 0.6%.
Among individual stocks, e-commerce company Rakuten
gained in Tokyo trading, along with SoftBank
and Casio
. In Hong Kong, New World Development
and Sunny Optical
rose, while AAC
fell. Kia Motors
advanced in South Korea and Foxconn
rose in Taiwan. Fortescue Metals
slid in Australia, while Woolworths
gained.