HONG KONG (AP) — Shares were mixed in Asia on Friday as investors pinned their hopes on weekend trade talks between China and the U.S.
U.S. futures and oil prices logged modest gains.
China reported that its exports rose at a faster-than-expected 8.1% annual pace in April, down from 12.4% the month before. Exports to the United States dropped more than 20%, however, as President Donald Trump’s steep tariff increases took effect.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 0.1% to 22,777.82, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.3% to 3,343.38.
Top U.S. and Chinese trade officials are due to meet Saturday in Geneva, Switzerland.
Asked on Thursday whether he would consider lowering tariffs on Chinese imports if this weekend’s talks go well, Trump said, “It could be. We’re going to see. Right now, you can’t get any higher. It’s at 145%. So we know it’s coming down.” He also said he expects the talks in Switzerland to be “substantive.”
Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.5% to 37,493.65, while the Kospi in Seoul was almost unchanged at 2,578.64.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.4% to 8,228.10.
Taiwan’s Taiex surged 1.7%.
U.S. stocks rose Thursday after the United States and United Kingdom announced a deal on trade that would lower some tariffs between the two countries, the first of what Wall Street hopes will be enough agreements to keep a recession from hitting the economy.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.6% to 5,663.94 for its 11th gain in the last 13 days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.6% to 41,368.45, and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.1% to 17,928.14.
Trump lauded what he called a “maxed-out trade deal” with the United Kingdom, which will keep 10% tariffs on U.K. products but lower taxes on U.K. automobiles in exchange for greater access in the U.K. market for U.S. beef, ethanol and other products.
Besides hopes for deals on trade, strong profit reports from U.S. companies also have helped to drive the S&P 500 to within 7.8% of its all-time high set in February after it dropped nearly 20% below the mark a month ago.
Axon Enterprise, the company that sells Tasers, body cameras and other public safety equipment, jumped 14.1% after joining the list. It benefited from strong growth for its software and services, and it raised its forecast for revenue over the full year.
Tapestry rose 3.7% after the company behind the Coach and Kate Spade brands also reported better profit and revenue than expected. It credited new, younger customers in North America, among other things.
Molson Coors, though, described a different landscape when it released its latest quarterly results, which fell short of analysts’ expectations. Its stock fell 4.5%.
Krispy Kreme tumbled 24.7% after withdrawing its forecasts for the full year. The doughnut seller said it made the move in part because of “macroeconomic softness” and because it’s pausing the rollout of sales of its doughnuts at more McDonald’s restaurants.
The U.S. economy has remained OK so far, with the Federal Reserve saying Wednesday that it still looks to be running at a solid rate underneath the surface. But pessimism has soured sharply among U.S. households because of tariffs, and the fear is that all the uncertainty created by them could be enough to force the economy into a recession.
A couple reports on the economy Thursday came in mixed. One said slightly fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week. But another said productivity for U.S. workers slowed by more than economists expected at the start of the year.
In other dealings early Friday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained 26 cents to $60.17 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Brent crude, the international standard, added 29 cents to $63.13 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar fell to 145.66 Japanese yen from 145.91 yen. The euro rose to $1.1228 from $1.1220.
