The view of Nanjing Road East Pedestrian Mall, the main shopping street in Shanghai.
Bruce Yuanyue Bi | The Image Bank | Getty Images
Asia-Pacific markets were mixed Friday as investors parsed China’s April trade data.
China’s exports surged in April even as businesses bore the brunt of U.S. tariffs that kicked into higher gear last month, while imports narrowed declines as Beijing stepped up stimulus.
Exports climbed 8.1% in U.S. dollar terms in April compared to the same month last year, official data showed, significantly outperforming the 1.9% increase forecast in a Reuters poll.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped 0.15%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 slipped 0.22%.
Uncertainty on Washington and Beijing reaching a deal in their scheduled trade talks in Switzerland is also dampening optimism.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 1.42% and the Topix gained 1.06%. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.3% and the small-cap Kosdaq slipped 0.59%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded flat.
India’s Nifty 50 slipped 0.74% at the open.
Overnight, Wall Street gained following U.S. President Donald Trump announced the broad outline of a trade deal with the United Kingdom — the first since the U.S. paused sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs in April.
U.S. stock futures hovered near the flatline as investors hope that the U.S.- United Kingdom trade deal framework signals more progress to come.
Specific details of the agreement remained unclear, and no official documents were signed during the Oval Office announcement.
“The final details are being written up,” Trump said. “In the coming weeks we’ll have it all very conclusive.”
Meanwhile, the three major averages closed higher. TheDow Jones Industrial Averagegained 254.48 points, or 0.62%, to settle at 41,368.45. TheS&P 500rose 0.58% and closed at 5,663.94. TheNasdaq Compositeadvanced 1.07% to end at 17,928.14.
— CNBC’s Sean Conlon and Pia Singh contributed to this report.
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