Stocks climbed in Asia, Euro and Japanese Yen slid to Dollar; What traders are watching 

Stocks climbed in Asia and the yen slipped with gold as the well flagged U.S. imposition of tariffs on Chinese imports began, something China vowed to fight back on. Treasuries declined, as did the yuan.

Equities rose from Sydney to Mumbai. Chinese shares reversed losses though remained strongly down for the week. Equities in Singapore sank after the government unexpectedly tightened curbs on the property market. The yuan slipped amid scrutiny of policymakers’ next moves. Copper sank for a fifth day, while oil pared recent losses.

Follow our live blog as China says it is forced to retaliate on U.S. tariffs.

The trade war reached an important milestone Friday as $34 billion of tariffs on Chinese imports into the U.S. came into effect. President Donald Trump has suggested the final total could reach $550 billion, a figure that exceeds all of U.S. goods imports from China in 2017. With Asian equities on course for a fourth week of losses, many stocks are trading at levels some technical analysts call oversold and buyers are being lured to Chinese shares after the slide.

Chinese central bankers have sought to shore up confidence after the recent battering for the nation’s assets, with a key policy maker late Thursday voicing support for the country’s currency and cautioning against bearish bets. Still, the yuan resumed its retreat on Friday.

Elsewhere, traders are watching out on America’s monthly employment report, and keeping an eye on Trump’s social-media accounts after his comment before the numbers in June.

Here are the main market moves:

Stocks

• The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.8 percent as of 2:33 p.m. Tokyo time.
• Topix index climbed 1.3 percent.
• Shanghai Composite rose 1.2 percent.
• Hang Seng gained 1 percent.
• Kospi index rose 0.8 percent.
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index gained 0.9 percent.
• Futures on the S&P 500 Index gained 0.3 percent.

Currencies

• The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index rose 0.1 percent.
• The Japanese yen slid 0.1 percent to 110.76 per dollar.
• The euro slid less than 0.05 percent to $1.1686.
• The yuan slipped 0.3 percent to 6.66 per dollar.

Bonds

• The yield on 10-year Treasuries rose two basis points to 2.85 percent.
• Australia’s 10-year yield was little changed at 2.60 percent.

Commodities

• West Texas Intermediate crude climbed 0.2 percent to $73.05 a barrel.
• Gold fell 0.2 percent to $1,254.43 an ounce.
• LME copper dipped 1.5 percent to $6,250.50 per metric ton.

Source: Bloomberg – Asian Stocks Climb as Tariffs Kick In; Yuan Drops: Markets Wrap

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