•European stocks traded mixed Wednesday as markets tried to rebound from a sell-off Monday resulting from China’s announcement of retaliatory tariffs on U.S. imports.
The pan-European STOXX 600 was flat in the opening minutes of trading, with travel and leisure stocks jumping out to a fast start with a 1% rise, while utilities dropped by 0.8% after the opening bell.
•Asian stocks rebounded from a 3-1/2-month low on Wednesday as a slight softening in rhetoric from U.S. President Donald Trump eased worries about the U.S.-China tariff war, and on expectations that Beijing could unveil more economic stimulus.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.6%. The index had fallen to its lowest level since the end of January the previous day as the Sino-U.S. trade conflict intensified. Beijing on Monday imposed a tariff hike on U.S. goods following Washington’s decision last week to hike it
•Japan’s Nikkei ended higher in choppy trade on Wednesday, snapping a seven-day losing streak, as expectations that China could roll out fresh stimulus to prop up a slowing economy supported stocks in the region.
The Nikkei share average ended 0.6% higher at 21,288.56, after trading in negative territory in the morning. It had dropped for seven straight days.
•China’s stock benchmarks rebounded roughly 2% on Wednesday, lifted by consumer shares, as weak industrial output and retail sales data reinforced expectations of fresh stimulus, while a slight softening in rhetoric from U.S. President Donald Trump eased trade worries.
China’s blue-chip CSI300 index rose 2.3% to 3,727.09, while the Shanghai Composite Index gained 1.9% to 2,938.68. ** Growth in industrial output slowed more-than-expected to 5.4% in April from a year earlier, pulling back from a surprising strong 4-1/2-year high of 8.5% in March. Retail sales were also worse-than-expected, with the headline number rising 7.2%, the slowest pace since May 2003.
Fears of further escalation in trade tensions were slightly eased after Trump cited the trade war with China “a little squabble” and insisted talks between the world’s two largest economies had not collapsed.
Reference: Reuters, CNBC
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