Trade Confusion Lifts Asian Markets

Trade commentary, which has been ping ponging all over the map, has brought some confusion to the Asian and Pacific Rim traders. However, headed into the afternoon, the Asian financial markets were drifting higher.

In Japan, the benchmark Nikkei 225 was up 0.64 percent. In Tokyo, the broader Topix index added a more modest gain of 0.28 percent by the afternoon. Shares of robot manufacturer, Fanuc gained over two percent.

In the Down Under, the benchmark S&P ASX 200 was also trading higher after falling sharply during the Wednesday trade session. At last glance, shares on the ASX 200 were up 0.89 percent.

In China, on the mainland, shares were advancing during the early trade hours. The Shanghai composite was up 0.4 percent. The smaller Shenzhen composite gained 0.57 percent and the Shenzhen component added 0.4 percent.

In Hong Kong, shares on the Hang Seng index were up by 0.63 percent by noon.

Asian Sentiment Improves Despite Confusing Trade Commentary and Rising Political Tensions

Asian and regional traders are watching commentary between the United States and China closely as the December 15 deadline for additional tariffs approaches.

With that said, tensions over Hong Kong remain high between the United States and China. On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted on legislation to sanction Chinese officials over Muslim detention camps.

This new development has added to China’s ire, as they are not happy with U.S. interference in local matters. This might complicate the ongoing trade talks between the two nations.

Market sentiment improved after President Donald Trump said that trade talks with China were “going very well.”

This comes after he said, the previous day, that he had no objection to waiting to signing a trade deal until after the 2020 Presidential election.

There were also headlines, in Bloomberg News that indicated that the two countries were inching closer to signing a preliminary trade agreement.