HONG KONG: Asian markets rallied on Wednesday after Donald Trump hailed"very good" phone talks with Xi Jinping and said they would meet at the G20 next week, renewing hopes for a deal to end a bruising trade war.
After a healthy lead from Wall Street, the vast majority of Asia's markets posted gains of at least one per cent - with Hong Kong leading the way by jumping more than two per cent. The rally was sparked after Trump tweeted:"Had a very good telephone conversation with President Xi of China. We will be having an extended meeting next week at the G-20 in Japan. Our respective teams will begin talks prior to our meeting."
"There is strong incentive for both presidents to re-engage," said Tai Hui, chief market strategist for Asia-Pacific at JP Morgan Asset Management. He also batted back an accusation from Trump of currency manipulation, saying the ECB's mandate"is price stability".