Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day
Get up to date with what’s moving global markets this morning.
(Bloomberg) --
New information released on the phone call at the center of the Trump impeachment inquiry. Hong Kong’s protests hit the tourism industry, retailers and even billionaires. Beijing’s gigantic new starfish-shaped airport opens. Here are some of the things people in markets are talking about today.
Trump Transcript
The White House has released a memorandum of a call between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, which is at the center of an impeachment inquiry into Trump. The rough transcript reveals Trump sought to enlist a foreign government’s aid in his re-election campaign by investigating Joe Biden, the front-runner to challenge him; to use his own personal lawyer to sidestep diplomatic channels; and to deploy the top law enforcement officer in the U.S. to assist a patently political endeavor. Trump defended the call at a news conference to conclude his participation in the United Nations General Assembly. “I didn’t threaten anybody. No push, no pressure, I didn’t do anything,” he said. He didn’t directly answer repeated questions about why Americans should consider it appropriate for the president to seek information on a political rival from a foreign leader.
Markets Up
Stocks in Asia looked set to push higher Thursday as signs of easing trade tensions overshadowed impeachment inquiry proceedings in Washington. The dollar climbed the most since March and Treasuries retreated. Trump said a trade agreement with China is getting “closer and closer” and there’s a “good chance” a deal can be reached. Beijing is starting to make big purchases of items such as beef and pork, the president added. He also expressed progress on trade talks with Japan. Elsewhere, oil extended declines as the EIA said U.S. crude supplies rose 2.41 million barrels last week. European equities fell back Wednesday amid rising concern that growth is flagging.
The Other Trade Deal
President Donald Trump and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe signed the “first stage” of an initial trade pact after meeting at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, which eases access for $7.2 billion in U.S. agricultural goods. The U.S. has withdrawn the threat of imposing auto tariffs on the Asian nation for now, a key sticking point in the more than year-long talks. Trump told reporters the trade deal between the two countries will help U.S. farmers by opening up Japan’s agricultural market, and said that he expects “in the fairly near future” that the U.S. will have “final comprehensive deals signed with Japan.”
Beijing’s Huge New Airport
Beijing Daxing International Airport has opened, just in time for the People’s Republic of China’s 70th birthday on Oct. 1. The starfish-shaped, 80 billion yuan ($11.2 billion) facility is designed to eventually handle more than 100 million passengers a year. Hailed by state media as a “new gateway” to the country, it’s symbolic for President Xi Jinping, who faces a raft of challenges, including a trade war with the U.S., a slowing economy and mass protests in Hong Kong. Xi has identified aviation as a key strategic industry. China wants to have 450 commercial airports by 2035, almost double the number at the end of 2018.
Hong Kong
The first week of October is China’s national holiday break, and it’s normally one of the busiest periods for Hong Kong’s tourism and retail industries. But as the city’s protests enter their 17th week, Chinese group tours are set to plunge 86% compared to the same period last year; flight prices from Shanghai to Hong Kong are 38% cheaper than in 2018 and only 30% of hotel rooms are booked for the holiday period. In the usually bustling shopping district of Causeway Bay, one in 10 stores stands empty. Even Hong Kong’s billionaires are not immune to the ongoing unrest. China’s government has started to weave a narrative linking the city’s wealthiest to the rising inequality it blames for the social unrest, a new stance that threatens the close ties Hong Kong dynasties have forged with Beijing.
What We’ve Been Reading
This is what’s caught our eye over the past 24 hours.
- JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon doesn’t expect a U.S.-China trade deal before 2020.
- Boris Johnson tries again to force a U.K. election.
- Big Oil faces a watershed test just off the Australian coast.
- These charts show how much China’s home builders are struggling.
- A Danske Bank executive snared in a money-laundering scandal has been found dead.
- The day after Brexit: Here’s what Britain crashing out of the EU might look like.
- Amazon unveils its rival to Apple’s AirPods.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alex Millson at amillson@bloomberg.net
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