Chinese markets jumped on Thursday afternoon, as investors closely watched Hong Kong markets after the Hang Seng index surged on Wednesday following the withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill.
Hong Kong shares rose 0.38 percent, following the previous day’s huge gains when it surged almost 4 percent on the back of reports on the withdrawal, prior to the announcement.
In mainland China, the Shanghai composite jumped 1.56 percent, while the Shenzhen component rose 1.59 percent and Shenzhen composite gained 1.57 percent.
Other markets in Asia Pacific also followed suit.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan surged 2.18 percent, while the Topix saw gains of 1.79 percent. Over in South Korea, the Kospi advanced 1.14 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.67 percent as majority of the sectors saw gains.
Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index gained almost 1 percent.
Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Wednesday fully withdrew a controversial extradition bill in Hong Kong that had sparked protests for months. It was one of five demands that protesters have been fighting for.
Still, Michael Yoshikami, founder and CEO of Destination Wealth Management, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” on Thursday that the “damage has been done.”
“While I think this certainly appears to be a positive step forward toward some sort of resolution, I think the impact is going to be felt in Hong Kong,” he said. “I think that is going to be something that we’re going to be dealing with for a significant period of time, months, for sure.”
Elsewhere in Europe, lawmakers in the United Kingdom defeated British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in parliament on Wednesday, moving to prevent him from taking the country out of the European Union without a formal agreement on October 31.
China says US agrees to meet for talks
U.S. futures jumped during Asia hours on the back of news that for another round of negotiations.
At around 11:57 p.m. ET, futures rose about 280 points, pointing to an implied opening gain of around 287 points. Futures on the S&P and Nasdaq both also jumped higher.
China’s Commerce Ministry had issued a statement on Thursday morning saying that Liu He, China’s top negotiator on trade, spoke with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.
The two sides agreed to hold another round of trade negotiations in Washington, D.C., towards the beginning of next month, and consultations will be made in mid-September in preparation for the meeting, the statement said.
Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had closed 237.45 points higher at 26,355.47, while the S&P 500 gained 1.1 percent to finish its trading day at 2,937.78. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.3 percent to 7,976.88.
Currencies and oil
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 98.491 after weakening from levels above 98.8 yesterday.
The Japanese yen, often seen as a safe-haven currency in times of turmoil, traded at 106.61 after easing from levels below 105.9 yesterday. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6821 after rising from the $0.676 handle in the previous session.
Oil prices fell in the morning of Asian trading hours, with international benchmark Brent crude futures edging down to $60.67 per barrel and U.S. crude futures flat at $56.27 per barrel.
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