Investing.com – Asian stocks slipped in morning trade on Friday despite reports that U.S. President Donald Trump said he predicted “great success” in the upcoming talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Trump said he may sign an agreement to officially end the Korean War with Kim at their summit, which would be held on June 12 in Singapore. Trump added that he may host Kim at the White House later this year.
“We could absolutely sign an agreement,” Trump said on Thursday during a news conference. “We’re looking at it. We’re talking about it with them.”
“That’s probably the easy part,” he added. “The hard part remains after that.”
In Asia, the Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2% by 9:40PM ET (01:40 GMT). The country’s economy contracted at an annualized rate of 0.6% in the first quarter of 2018, compared with the estimated 0.4% contraction, revised gross domestic product data from the Cabinet Office showed.
China’s Shanghai Composite and the Shenzhen Component both opened 0.7% lower, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index was down 1%. ZTE Corp (HK:0763) made headlines again as the telecommunications company reached a deal with the U.S. to get back in business. Under the agreement, ZTE would pay a record-large fine and undergo management changes, according to a statement, which added that the ban is now suspended for 10 years but could be activated by the U.S. if the company commit more violations in the future.
Elsewhere, South Korea’s KOSPI and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.7% and 0.1% respectively in morning trade.
Looking ahead, Investors would turn their attention to this weekend’s G-7 meeting in Canada for more hints on the trade outlook.
President Emmanuel Macron of France warned on Wednesday that he would not sign the summit’s traditional joint statement unless progress is made on tariffs and other contentious issues.