Investing.com - Asian stocks advanced in morning trade on Thursday as worries surrounding a trade war dissipated.
White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders hinted that the expected U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports may exclude Canada, Mexico and a few of other countries.
“There are potential carve outs for Canada and Mexico based on national security and possibly other countries as well. That would be a case-by-case and country-by-country basis,” Sanders told reporters at the White House.
Overnight, the S&P 500 closed just 0.05% lower at 2,726.8 after an initial loss of almost 1%. The Dow fell 0.3% while the Nasdaq added 0.3%.
Japan’s Q4 GDP numbers made headlines as it was revised higher to 1.6% on stronger business investment, beating the estimated 1.4%. The Nikkei gained 0.7% by 9:20pm ET as investors await Bank of Japan’s policy decision tomorrow. Automaker Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (T:7201) denied reports that suggested it was in talks about a share transaction involving Renault (PA:RENA) and French state.
In China, the Shanghai Composite and the SZSE Component both gained 0.1% in early trade. The country’s February trade data is due later today, with imports estimated to grow 8% y/y versus a 36.9% growth in January.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index jumped 1.1%. Wynn Macau Ltd (HK:1128) surged 3.4% after the company announced that it would be increasing its quarterly dividend to US$0.75 per share from US$0.50 apiece.
Elsewhere, Korea’s KOSPI also gained 0.6%. Although it was not a directional driver, reports about North Korea saying to offer conditional halt to the ICBM program have received some focus.