World stocks mostly gain, helped by hopes for progress in China-US trade talks

HONG KONG: Shares advanced on Friday in Europe after a mixed day in Asia, as investors pinned their hopes on weekend trade talks between China and the US.  

Germany’s DAX gained 0.7% to 23,508.03, while the CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.8% to 7,753.00. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.4% to 8,574.50.  

The futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.2%, while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged 0.1% higher.  

China reported that its exports grew at a faster-than-expected annual pace of 8.1% in April, down from 12.4% the previous month. However, exports to the United States dropped more than 20% as President Donald Trump’s steep tariff increases took effect.  

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.4% to 22,867.74, while the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.3% to 3,342.00.  

Top US and Chinese trade officials are due to meet on Saturday in Geneva, Switzerland.  

Asked on Thursday whether he would consider lowering tariffs on Chinese imports if this weekend’s talks go well, Trump said, “It could be. We’re going to see. Right now, you can’t get any higher. It’s at 145%. So we know it’s coming down.” He also stated that he expects the talks in Switzerland to be “substantive.”  

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.6% to 37,503.33, while the Kospi in Seoul edged down 0.1% to 2,577.27.  

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5% to 8,231.20.  

Taiwan’s Taiex surged 1.8%, while India’s Sensex fell 1.1%.  

US stocks rose on Thursday after the United States and United Kingdom announced a trade deal that would lower some tariffs between the two countries—the first of what Wall Street hopes will be enough agreements to prevent a recession.  

The S&P 500 climbed 0.6%, marking its 11th gain in the past 13 days. The Dow added 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.1%.  

Trump praised what he called a “maxed-out trade deal” with the United Kingdom, which will maintain 10% tariffs on UK products but lower taxes on UK automobiles in exchange for greater access for US beef, ethanol, and other goods in the UK market.  

Besides hopes for trade deals, strong profit reports from US companies have also helped to drive the S&P 500 to within 7.8% of its all-time high set in February after having dropped nearly 20% below that mark a month ago.  

The US economy has remained steady so far, with the Federal Reserve stating on Wednesday that it continues to run at a solid pace beneath the surface. However, pessimism has sharply worsened among US households due to tariffs, and fears persist that the uncertainty created by them could be enough to push the economy into a recession.  

Two reports on the economy released on Thursday provided mixed signals. One indicated that slightly fewer US workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, while another revealed that worker productivity slowed by more than economists expected at the start of the year.  

In other dealings early Friday, US benchmark crude oil gained $1.18 to $61.09 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.  

Brent crude, the international standard, added $1.15 to $63.99 per barrel.  

The US dollar fell to 145.32 Japanese yen from 145.91 yen. The euro rose to $1.1244 from $1.1220.

By RSS/AP