The Mainland market took heart from a rise in U.S. shares overnight, where all three of Wall Street indexes surged after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted that the Fed might not raise interest rates much further. In a speech to the Economic Club of New York, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said that rates are close to "neutral," the level at which they neither hold back growth nor aid it. That might mean the Fed isn't planning to raise interest rates far above their current levels. Powell also appeared to suggest that the Fed might pause its cycle of interest rate increases next year so the central bank can assess the effects of its actions. That relieved investors who feel the nine-year-old bull market could come to an end if rates rise too fast.
Investors are looking ahead to the Group of 20 summit beginning Friday when President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet and discuss trade issues. The summit will be watched closely for how relations between both countries develop, in addition to further news surrounding Sino-US trade. China's main goal at the G20 meeting is to get the United States to refrain from raising the tariffs in January.
US President Donald Trump was hopeful of a breakthrough with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping over dinner on Saturday evening in Buenos Aires, Larry Kudlow, Trump's top economic adviser, told reporters on Tuesday during a briefing before the Group of 20 meeting. But the US was also ready to impose more tariffs on Chinese imports if the upcoming talks fall apart, he said.
CURRENCY NEWS: China yuan strengthened against greenback on Thursday, after central bank set stronger mid-point rate. Prior to market opening, the People Bank of China set central parity rate at 6.9353 per US dollar, stronger by 147 basis points from previous day mid-point rate. In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by 2% from the central parity rate each trading day.
OFFSHORE MARKET NEWS: Wall Street stocks closed higher on Wednesday, after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell hinted that the Fed might not raise interest rates much further. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 617.70 points, or 2.5%, to 25,366.43. The broad-based S&P 500 index surged 61.62 points, or 2.3%, to 2,743.79, its biggest gain since March 26, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 208.89 points, or 2.9%, to 7,291.59.
The major European markets turned in a lackluster performance on Wednesday. The French CAC 40 Index closed nearly flat. The German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively.
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