Global Shares Up as Trade Issues are Resolved

WORLDWIDE – World shares rallied as two key trade issues had positive developments. The results of Britain’s general elections and news that a “phase one” trade agreement is imminent gave investors a shot of hope.

Global markets and oil prices ended the week on an upswing as the United States and China came to an agreement. In this initial trade agreement, some tariffs set to be imposed on China were pushed back. In exchange, the Asian superpower would purchase more American farm products.

The positive development on the trade deal resulted in US equities posting major gains this week. The S&P 500 went up by 0.7% while the Nasdaq Composite advanced by 0.9%. The Dow Jones also enjoyed gains of 0.4%.

The three indices posted record highs as well. The Dow closed at 28,135 after peaking at 28,290. The S&P established a new record at 3,168 and the Nasdaq also set a record breaking 8,734.88.

Issues with the trade deal have been causing heightened anxiety since last year, but traders are hopeful that the progress made will soon have a positive impact on the world market. As Peter Tuchman, a trader on the NYSE, explained, China and the US’ economies are “incredibly intermingled.”

Asian markets also rallied as news about the trade deal raised spirits in the region. The Topix of Japan and the Hang Seng Index were the biggest gainers. Meanwhile, the Straits Times Index (STI) of Singapore reached the highest level it had in over two weeks.

Experts are saying the trade agreement will benefit China more, with the small but more open countries like Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan also experiencing positive changes.

The initial trade deal wasn’t the only bright spot of the week. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s landslide win also had European markets celebrating.

The FTSE 250 rose by as much as 5.4% early Friday morning to hit a new high. However, the FTSE 100 was sluggish as shares of listed exporters fell. The MSCI advanced by 0.32% while the Pan-European STOXX 600 went up by 1.25%

The sterling pound was also a big winner. It experienced its largest gain against the US dollar in three years.

Market analysts are claiming Johnson’s majority win will finally bring the Brexit stand-off to a close and open the flow of investments once more. They also predicted that a resolution of the issue will be advantageous to the euro and pound.

But as far as the world finance markets and economy are concerned, the US-China trade deal is the one to watch religiously.