Asian Stocks Waver as Markets Watch Trump-Xi Summit – Asia Market Wrap

Asian equities swung between modest gains and losses as investors monitored the summit between the US and China for signals on the future of trade relations between the world’s two largest economies.

MSCI’s Asia Pacific equity index was up 0.1% after earlier climbing as much as 0.8%. Mainland Chinese stocks fell 1.3% after reaching their highest levels since 2021 ahead of the meeting between President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping in Beijing. The offshore yuan strengthened for an 11th consecutive session, marking its longest winning streak since September 2017.

The artificial intelligence trade remained a major focus, with a regional technology index climbing as much as 2.3% to a record high. US equity futures also advanced, with Nasdaq 100 contracts rising 0.3%. Cisco shares surged 20% in extended trading after issuing a stronger-than-expected sales forecast. European markets were set to open 0.7% higher.

Strong momentum in technology shares helped offset concerns about inflation, which have fueled expectations that the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates next year. Treasuries gained modestly, with the US 10-year yield slipping one basis point to 4.46%, while Australian government bonds also advanced.

Trump said the US and China would have a “fantastic future,” while Xi emphasized cooperation over rivalry, setting a constructive tone for the first visit by a sitting US president to Beijing in nearly a decade.

Trump highlighted the business delegation accompanying his visit, including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and Tesla’s Elon Musk. Huang later described the meetings in Beijing as having gone “excellent,” while Xi told US business leaders that China would continue opening its economy further.

Despite the upbeat diplomatic tone, Chinese equities weakened, with the CSI 300 falling 1.3% and Shanghai’s main index declining 1%.