Asian Markets open higher on US-China trade rumors

January 18, 2019: Hong Kong stocks rose in the opening few minutes of trade Friday, tracking a healthy lead from Wall Street fueled by a report that the US was considering easing tariffs on Chinese goods as part of a drive to reach a trade deal.

The Hang Seng Index climbed 0.89 percent, or 237.81 points, to 26,993.44.

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index added 0.32 percent, or 8.10 points, to open at 2,567.74, while the Shenzhen Composite Index, which tracks stocks on China's second exchange, was 0.12 percent, or 1.55 points, up at 1,310.69.

Similarly, Tokyo stocks opened higher on Friday as well, tracking gains on Wall Street as investors took heart from the report regarding US lifting trade tariffs on China.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index rose 0.27 percent or 54.56 points to 20,456.83 in early trade while the broader Topix index was up 0.27 percent or 4.15 points at 1,547.35.

"Following gains in US shares, Japanese shares are seen trading positively" in early hours, Toshiyuki Kanayama, senior market analyst at Monex said in a commentary.

A weaker yen against the dollar is also supporting Japanese shares, analysts said.

The dollar fetched 109.26 yen in early Asian trade, against 109.19 yen in New York late Thursday.

US stocks suddenly jumped higher after The Wall Street Journal reported Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had proposed lifting some or all tariffs on China as a way to reassure markets and bolster the odds of a bigger trade deal.

In individual Tokyo trade, electronics firms were higher, with Panasonic up 0.47 percent at 1,050 yen and Sharp higher by 0.81 percent at 1,116 yen.

However, precision motor maker Nidec dropped 4.92 percent to 11,785 after it said its net profit for the year to March would be 14 percent lower than the previous year.

Hitachi edged up 0.14 percent to 3,487 yen after it froze construction of a nuclear power station in Wales in Britain, booking a cost of 300 billion yen ($2.8 billion).

On Wall Street, the Dow ended up 0.7 percent at 24,370.10.

(APP)