- Home
- >
- Daily Accents
- >
- Stocks Waver on Trade Deal Uncertainty
Stocks Waver on Trade Deal Uncertainty
Rating:
Loading...U.S. stocks slipped Monday, dragged lower by broad declines across all 11 sectors in the S&P 500.
With the bulk of third-quarter earnings results out, investors’ attention has lately turned back to the U.S. and China’s trade talks.
After some optimism around the prospects of a “phase one” trade deal last week, some analysts like Mike Bell, global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, have flagged concerns that investors could be disappointed by the scope of any agreement.
“The fundamental trade tension between the U.S. and China is unlikely to go away in a hurry and I think the problem with calling it a ‘phase one’ trade deal is that it then implies there will be a ‘phase two’ trade deal,” Mr. Bell said.
Earlier, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng benchmark closed down 2.6%, the fourth-biggest drop of the year, after police fired gunshots at protesters, and demonstrations across the city forced schools and offices to close early.
“It’s very concerning today,” said Weiqi Zhu, a fund manager at Gao Zheng Asset Management, adding that political uncertainty was putting off investment in Hong Kong. “The violence is up to another stage now.”
The continuing protests have triggered similar selloffs this year, including in August when demonstrators paralyzed the airport, one of the world’s busiest travel hubs. The Hang Seng Index is one of the weakest major stock market performers this year, up just 4%, compared with double-digit gains elsewhere in Asia, the U.S. and Europe.
In currencies, the British pound was up 0.8% against the U.S. dollar after Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party said it won’t contest Conservative-held seats in the December election. The move could make it easier for current Prime Minister Boris Johnson to obtain a majority in the election.
Trader Georgi Bozhidarov Read more:
If you think, we can improve that section,
please comment. Your oppinion is imortant for us.
