The United States and China have reached an historic and enforceable agreement on a Phase One trade deal that requires structural reforms and other changes to China's economic and trade regime in the areas of intellectual property, technology transfer, agriculture, financial services, and currency and foreign exchange. The "Phase 1" agreement means that the U.S. won't impose new tariffs on Chinese goods that had been scheduled for Sunday. In addition to canceling the new tariffs, the U.S. also agreed to reduce certain existing import taxes on about $112 billion in Chinese goods from 15% to 7.5%. In return, Trump said that the Chinese have agreed to "massive" purchases of American farm and manufactured products as part of the initial deal. The president said a so-called phase-two deal will be discussed immediately rather than after the 2020 presidential election. The two major economies plan to sign the partial accord in the first week of January.
The long-awaited deal could dial down tensions between the United States and China and provide some relief to investors, who have been buffeted for months by worries that a full-blown trade war would pressure global economic growth.
Meanwhile, U.K. Prime Minister Johnson's Conservative Party swept to a landslide victory in elections on Thursday, securing a strong majority in Parliament. The convincing win gives him support to secure a Brexit deal and negotiate a new relationship with the European Union next year. Brexit concerns have been cited as one lingering headwind for global investors.
Healthcare stocks climbed, with CSL shares led rally with a gain of 2.5% to A$285.10, Cochlear (COH) up 2.9% to A$231.62.
Shares of consumer Staples were also up, Coles Group (COL) grew 0.9% to A$15.23, Woolworths rose 0.6% to A$37.63,
The buy now, pay later space was in focus after Openpay (OPY) debuted on the ASX, following an initial public offering (IPO) that raised A$50 million through the issue of 31.25 million new shares at A$1.60 per share, marking the sale of a third of the company The group is the latest entrant into an increasingly competitive space which already includes names such as Afterpay (APT), Zip (Z1P) and Splitit (SPT). OPY reports that transactions on its platform range from of $50 to $20,000. Installations last from 2 month to 24 months and the group provides services to retail, automotive, health care and home improvement verticals, whose merchants, include Bunning's, Peter Alexander, Smiggle. The group reported a statutory loss before tax of $14.7 million for the period ending 30 June 2019 compared to losses of $4.4 million and A$2.3 million in 2018 and 2017 respectively. OPY closed the session with a loss of 17% at A$1.32.
Sigma Health (SIG) shares slumped by 8 per cent after Australian Pharmaceutical Industries (API) sold its A$84 million stake in SIG, having reached the conclusion that a merger with the drug distributor is no longer beneficial or in line with its strategy. API said that the 'merger proposal was one option to create value. Selling our Sigma shares will allow API to further accelerate its focus on its portfolio of businesses and our board remains confident that the combination of our Pharmacy Distribution, Priceline Pharmacy, Clear Skincare and Consumer Brands businesses will deliver sustained shareholder value in the coming years'. API sold more than 137.26 million SIG shares and following the transaction holds no more shares in SIG
CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar, sensitive to shifts in broader risk appetite, declined against greenback. The Australian dollar changed hands at $0.6874, weakening from levels above $0.693.
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