Asian shares rally on hopes for China-U.S. trade breakthrough

Elaine Kurtenbach, The Associated Press</span>
Published Tuesday, January 8, 2019 11:51PM EST
Last Updated Wednesday, January 9, 2019 5:25AM EST

BANGKOK -- Share prices have surged in Europe and Asia on Wednesday on hopes for progress in resolving the tariffs battle between the U.S. and China as talks appeared to have been extended in Beijing.

KEEPING SCORE: Germany's DAX added 1.3 per cent to 10,944.12 while the CAC 40 in France climbed 1.4 per cent to 4,837.95. Britain's FTSE 100 jumped 0.8 per cent to 6,913.33. Wall Street looked set for more gains, with the future contract for the Dow up 0.5 per cent while that for the S&P 500 also rose 0.5 per cent.

ASIA'S DAY: Japan's Nikkei 225 index gained 1.1 per cent to 20,427.06 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 2.3 per cent to 26,462.32. The Shanghai Composite index surged 1.0 per cent to 2,544.34 while South Korea's Kospi advanced 2.0 per cent to 2,064.71. Australia's S&P ASX 200 surged 1.0 per cent to 5,778.30. Shares also rose in Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

CHINA-U.S. TRADE: The Chinese Foreign Ministry said trade talks with the U.S. in Beijing had ended after three days of discussions. It gave no details. President Donald Trump tweeted overnight that "Talks with China are going very well!" a potential positive sign even though no major developments had been announced. Experts say it may take months to resolve the causes of the trade war, which include disagreements over Beijing's handling of technology and intellectual property.

U.S. SHUTDOWN: President Donald Trump's televised address Tuesday night helped soothe frazzled nerves over what steps he might take in the standoff with lawmakers over border wall funding, which has resulted in a partial government shutdown. Trump argued for funding on security and humanitarian grounds as he sought to put pressure on newly empowered Democrats.

ANALYST'S VIEWPOINT: "Trump did not declare a national emergency, nor did he hint toward one, which might have been a fear before the speech," Stephen Innes of Oanda said in a commentary. Meanwhile, "currencies are holding firm riding the wave sentiment from the positive buzz in U.S.-China trade talks."

ENERGY: Oil prices also continued to rally. U.S. crude rose $1.05 to $50.83 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It has risen for eight of the past nine days and gained 2.6 per cent to $49.78 per barrel on Tuesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, added $1.06 to $59.78 per barrel. It gained 2.4 per cent to $58.72 a barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The dollar climbed to 108.90 yen from 108.75 yen. The euro rose to $1.1461 from $1.1442.

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AP Markets Writer Marley Jay contributed.

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