Gold Increases & Stocks Decline as Trade Tensions Reduce Risk – Asia Market Wrap

US equity-index futures fell after the S&P 500 rallied late Monday, as investors awaited news on trade talks between President Trump and China’s Xi.

Contracts for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 fell 0.3%, while those for European stocks were unchanged. The Dollar rebounded versus all of its Group-of-10 counterparts. Asian stocks were largely unchanged, with Hong Kong rising on stimulus prospects. Treasuries held firm following an auction of Japanese government bonds, which witnessed robust demand.

The offshore Yuan edged closer to its onshore counterpart as the US pushed for talks between Trump and Xi. Meanwhile, China’s manufacturing sector had its greatest decline since September 2022.

Separately, Russia and Ukraine concluded a second round of talks in Istanbul, which did not bring the two sides any closer to resolving the war but did provide the framework for a new prisoner swap.

In commodities, oil climbed for a second day as a weaker Dollar increased the attraction of goods priced in the currency and geopolitical tensions hindered the possibility of further supply from Russia and Iran. Gold fell 0.5% Monday after trade concerns drove investors to haven assets.