investingLive Asia-Pacific FX news wrap: Asia opens higher, US-China trade optimism lift

Forex Short News

Positive signals from both Washington and Beijing over the weekend boosted hopes for a breakthrough in U.S.-China trade negotiations after two days of talks between top officials. Presidents Trump and Xi are expected to meet later this week to finalise the deal — the third such accord in the past nine months.

In early Asia trading, well before other markets opened, the Australian and New Zealand dollars jumped to two-week highs as risk appetite improved. Both economies are highly exposed to Chinese demand, and their currencies — particularly the AUD — often serve as liquid proxies for the “China trade.”

The move higher was not extended, despite additional support from the People’s Bank of China, which set the onshore yuan reference rate at its strongest level in more than a year. Chinese equities also gained, helping lift regional shares.U.S. equity index futures gained.

Fresh data added to the positive tone: China’s September industrial profits rose 21.6% y/y, the strongest since November 2023, after August’s robust 20.4% gain. Year-to-date profits climbed 3.2%, the best since August 2024, as Beijing’s efforts to curb excessive price competition bolstered margins.

Japan’s September services PPI showed inflation accelerating to +3.0% y/y, above both expectations and the previous +2.7%, underscoring persistent cost pressures in the service sector.

Elsewhere,

  • Direct flights between China and India resumed after a five-year hiatus, marking a modest thaw in bilateral ties
  • In the South China Sea, a U.S. Sea Hawk helicopter and an F/A-18F Super Hornet crashed in separate incidents on Sunday; fortunately, no injuries were reported. Investigations are underway.
  • In Latin America, Argentina’s President Javier Milei’s Freedom Advances party secured victory in mid-term elections. The result, paired with the recent US$20 billion U.S. financial support package, is expected to provide a tailwind for Argentine assets.
  • On the corporate front, Daiwa Capital Markets raised its Tesla price target to US$420 from US$300

Asia-Pac
stocks:

  • Japan
    (Nikkei 225) +2.2%
  • Hong
    Kong (Hang Seng) +0.9%
  • Shanghai
    Composite +0.99%
  • Australia
    (S&P/ASX 200) +0.38%

This article was written by Eamonn Sheridan at investinglive.com.