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Stock markets nervous as US tariff deadline nears
NEW YORK, Dec 11, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Key stock markets were soft on Tuesday
and the dollar faltered as nervousness reigned surrounding China-US trade
talks with less than one week until Washington is due to impose fresh tariffs
on Chinese goods.
With the December 15 deadline approaching, US President Donald Trump still
has not scrapped planned levies on about $160 billion of Chinese goods, which
many fear could derail efforts to resolve the two countries’ churning trade
war.
“Given the market has bought into the December tariff delay in a big way,
all hell could break loose if the tariffs don’t get postponed,” said Stephen
Innes at AxiTrader.
“Indeed, that would be a bitter pill for investors to swallow as the
reality… sets in that they have yet again been taken down the trade talk
garden path only to end up at the cliff edge.”
The London equity market also was hit by official data showing the UK
economy flattened in October after contracting the previous two months.
But sterling still climbed to an eight-month high at $1.3190, one day after
reaching a 2.5-year peak against the euro.
The British currency remains well supported going into the final straight
of the UK general election Thursday, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s
Conservatives tipped to win a majority that will help him drive through his
Brexit deal.
The euro, meanwhile, got a shot in the arm from a closely-watched German
confidence gauge — the ZEW barometer — which returned to positive territory
after months in the red, although fears linger over trade tensions and an
industrial slowdown.
Wall Street ended the day in the red for a second straight session while
European stock markets ended their day off the worst levels seen in the
morning, with Paris even managing a slight gain.
Major Asian indices closed little changed.
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The consensus is that China and the United States will eventually hammer
out a partial trade pact to relieve some of the uncertainty, and that has
fueled a global equity rally for weeks.
However, conflicting comments from both sides — optimistic and downbeat —
are keeping dealers on their toes.
While the week is full of key events including central bank decisions in
the United States and Europe, market observers say the trade negotiations are
critical.
– Key figures around 2200 GMT –
New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 27,881.72 (close)
New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,132.52 (close)
New York – Nasdaq: DOWN 0.1 percent at 8,616.18 (close)
London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 7,213.76 points (close)
Frankfurt – DAX 30: DOWN 0.3 percent at 13,070.72 (close)
Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.2 percent at 5,848.03 (close)
EURO STOXX 50: FLAT at 3,671.78 (close)
Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 23,410.19 (close)
Hong Kong – Hang Seng: DOWN 0.2 percent at 26,436.62 (close)
Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.1 percent at 2,917.32 (close)
Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1096 from $1.1064 at 2200 GMT
Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3182 from $1.3147
Euro/pound: UP at 84.18 pence from 84.15 pence
Dollar/yen: UP at 108.74 yen from 108.56 yen
Brent North Sea crude: UP 0.2 percent at $64.34 per barrel
West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.4 percent $58.24
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