Asia shares gain on US-China trade hopes; oil eases

TOKYO: Asian shares rallied on Friday as Wall Street earnings and signs of a thaw in U.S.-China relations boosted investor sentiment, while oil prices eased following fresh U.S. sanctions on Russian suppliers.

Intel results after the close in New York beat expectations, adding to a batch of positive U.S. earnings reports. Japan’s Nikkei share gauge jumped before a speech where the nation’s new prime minister is expected to talk about stimulus.

Crude futures trimmed a weekly advance spurred by new U.S. curbs on Russia’s two biggest oil companies.

As the U.S. government shutdown blots out most economic data, the spotlight is on Friday’s consumer price figures for signals about next week’s policy meeting at the Federal Reserve.

Sentiment was buoyed after the White House confirmed U.S. President Donald Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping next week during a tour through Asia as a tariff deadline looms.

“The announcement signals confidence that trade talks to be held in Malaysia between high level delegates in the coming days are likely to yield positive results,” Capitital.com senior market analyst Kyle Rodda wrote about the White House statement.

“It’s unlikely either side would set their leader up for an awkward failure.”

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.5% in early trade.

Japan’s Nikkei stock index rose 1.2%.

The U.S. dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, added 0.1% to 99.00.

The euro edged down 0.1% to $1.161, and the yen weakened 0.2% to 152.85 versus the dollar.

Trump departs for Malaysia late on Friday night and will also visit Japan and South Korea, where he will meet Xi next Thursday.

Trade tension between Washington and Beijing has been escalating, and a meeting between the two leaders would come just before a Nov. 1 deadline for an additional 100% U.S. tariff to be imposed on Chinese imports.

On the U.S. calendar, Friday’s core consumer price index print, a key input for Fed policy, is widely expected to hold steady at 3.1%.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said last week it would publish the report despite the government shutdown - now in its 23rd day - to assist the Social Security Administration with its annual cost-of-living adjustment.

In Japan, core consumer prices rose 2.9% year-on-year in September, data showed on Friday, staying above the central bank’s 2% target and keeping alive market expectations of a near-term interest rate hike.

Japan’s new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will deliver a highly anticipated speech in the afternoon as her government reportedly mulls a sizable spending package.

Intel’s shares surged in after-hours trading after the company beat expectations for September-quarter profit.

In early European trades, the pan-region Euro Stoxx 50 futures were up 0.16% at 5,689, German DAX futures rose 0.14% at 24,345, FTSE futures edged up 0.04% at 9,623.5. U.S. stock futures, the S&P 500 e-minis , rose 0.12% at 6,783.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin gained 0.8% to $110,512.30, and ether rose 1.2% to $3,878.01.

Spot gold was up 0.3% at $4,138.52 per ounce, but still on track for its worst week since May.

Oil prices surged after Washington announced late Wednesday new sanctions on major Russian suppliers Rosneft and Lukoil, adding pressure on the Kremlin to end the war in Ukraine.

U.S. crude retreated 0.7% to $61.38 a barrel and Brent fell to $65.55 per barrel, down 0.7% on the day.