Asian Stocks Mixed Ahead of U.S.-China Trade Negotiations

Investing.com - Asian stocks were mixed in morning trade on Monday as investors look ahead to the Sino-U.S. trade talks that are set to resume later in the week.

Traders will be watching for any hints of progress as the two sides try to agree on a deal before a deadline on March 1. If a deal is not reached by then, the U.S. could raise the tariff rates on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods to 25% from 10%.

Last week, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the two countries were “making a lot of progress” in the trade front. Contradicting Mnuchin’s comments, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told CNBC that the U.S. was "miles and miles" from reaching a trade deal with China.

The Shanghai Composite and the SZSE Component rose 0.4% and 0.7% by 9:40 PM ET (02:40 GMT). Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up 0.2%.

In other news, the World Trade Organization is considering starting an investigation into U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Chinese goods, according to Bloomberg.

“This WTO case is especially significant because it deals with the central international legal issue in the U.S. conduct of its trade war with China -- whether the U.S. can impose trade restrictions on China in response to alleged Chinese WTO violations without first seeking dispute settlement in the WTO,” James Bacchus, a former Democratic congressman and onetime head of the WTO’s appellate body, said in an email that was cited by Bloomberg.

“I believe these U.S. tariffs are inconsistent with WTO obligations, but it will be left to my successors on the WTO appellate body to decide.”

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.4%, while South Korea’s KOSPI traded near flat at 2,179.86.

Australia's stock markets are closed for a public holiday.

Related Articles

Stock futures rise on Apple relief

Shareholders tell RWE to take hard line in coal compensation talks

Alibaba revenue grows at weakest pace in three years as slowing China bites