Uncertainty of the US-China Trade Deal Causes a Dip in Asia Market

ASIA – In the market, Asia stocks are now starting to dip as the community awaits clarification of the US-China trade deal as they enter the first phase of their agreement, and a tariff rollback is expected.

There was a decrease of 0.44 percent in Japan’s Nikkie 225, as observed in the earlier trades. It is due to the drop of 1.06 percent of the Fast Retailing index heavyweight shares.

The Japanese automaker, Nissan’s shares, dropped at around 4 percent. This is the aftermath of the company after posting around 70 percent year-on-year drop for their operating income in the second quarter of the year.

There are also a few declines in the shares of Korea. The Kospi dropped at 0.47 percent. The heavy-weight financial sub-index also decreased by over 0.4 percent resulting in a decrease of 0.17 percent of the S&P/ASX 200 of Australia.

A decline of trading up to 0.22 percent lower by the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index can also be observed.

Going into the corporate news, Tencent, a Chinese tech giant, is going to announce its earnings for the quarter today.

Hong Kong protests

It can be observed that the political battles in Hong Kong are worsening this week. And now, market watchers are observing the developments in Hong Kong despite the turmoil.

Carrie Lam stated last Tuesday that all the protestors who are “paralyzing” the city are selfish and inconsiderate.

On Monday, the Hong Kong protests that have started around six months ago became more aggressive, and there were now violent actions.

Kon Wing-Cheung, the Hong Kong senior superintendent, said in an interview with the Reuters last Tuesday that the society nowadays is now facing a threat of a total breakdown.

At 9:30 a.m. HK/SN, the markets in Hong Kong are bound to open.

US-China trade deal

United States President Donald Trump, in an interview with the Economic Club of New York, told the reporters last Tuesday that Beijing is offering a trade deal. Still, he had limited the details with regards to the progress of their agreement.

The US president has also reclaimed his trade attack towards China, calling them a bunch of “cheaters, and instead of blaming the current situation on the past leaders of the United States.

A senior foreign-exchange strategist at the National Australia Bank, Rodrigo Catril, states in a note that Trump is putting emphasis on the rhetoric, and almost none for the details.

The details of their trade deal remain a mystery, but both the U.S. and China are now progressing into the first phase of the agreement to roll back tariffs. The main goal of the U.S. is to eliminate intellectual property theft and introduce a more open market. China, on the other hand, wants a drop of $250 billion in tariffs from Washington since the trade war has started.