Immediate pact considered improbable
The United States and China may, or even need to conclude an agreement, said Liqian Ren, director of modern Alpha at Wisdomtree Asset Management. At this early stage, however, there seems to be little incitement to do it quickly, she added.
“Everyone always wants to see how the other side faces negative opposite winds,” said Ren.
“Right now, the market is perhaps a little too optimistic in terms of what China and the United States can achieve and how speed will evolve.”
Trade tensions between the two nations increased last month when the United States increased prices from all Chinese imports to a huge 145%, and China then raised samples from 125%American imports.
Friday, Trump's comments that an 80% price on Chinese products “seems fair”, making its first suggestion of a specific alternative to 145% samples, created a certain hope of progress towards the resolution of the dispute.
The S&P 500 reference stock market index has already erased the steep losses observed in the immediate consequences of the announcement of prices on April 2, although companies continue to warn investors of their impact and the uncertainty they create, in the comments related to the profits.
The S&P 500 remains down approximately 8% compared to its record in February and around 4% for the year.
In the middle of tariff chaos, low surveys on consumer feelings and other “soft data” have raised concerns about American growth, although most economic data have indicated resilience in the economy.
