US-China trade deal review postponed

Ross J Burland FXStreet

The United States and China have delayed a review of their Phase 1 trade deal initially slated for Saturday, sources familiar with the plans told Reuters.

Scheduling conflicts and the need to allow time for more Chinese purchases of US exports ha been cited as reasons for the delay.

No new date for the initial six-month compliance review has been agreed, sources said.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He were expected to hold a videoconference on Saturday, the six-month anniversary of the trade deal’s Feb. 15 entry into force.

Market implications

US President Donald Trump on Friday repeated his view that the trade deal was “doing very well.”

Investors can breathe a sigh of relief that the postponement did not reflect any substantive problem with the trade deal.

S&P 500 Index Weekly Forecast: A time for reflection?

Author

Ross J Burland

FXStreet

Ross J Burland, born in England, UK, is a sportsman at heart. He played Rugby and Judo for his county, Kent and the South East of England Rugby team.

EUR/USD looks weak below 1.1800

EUR/USD has slipped back under pressure, breaking through the 1.1800 support and drifting towards the weekly lows near 1.1770 ahead of the opening bell in Asia. The move reflects renewed strength in the US Dollar, with steady geopolitical tensions keeping its demand firm. Moving forward, the release of the German labour market report and flash inflation figures should keep European investors entertained on Friday.

GBP/USD threatens the 200-day SMA near 1.3440

GBP/USD rapidly leaves behind Wednesday’s strong advance, coming under heavy pressure and retesting the 1.3440 zone, where the critical 200-day SMA is located. Cable’s deep pullback follows the strong gains in the Greenback, while investors continue to pencil in a potential BoE rate cut in March.

Gold trims gains, slips back to around $5,170

Gold is now facing some downside pressure, hovering around the $5,170 region on Thursday. The yellow metal surrenders part of its earlier gains on the back of the resurgence of the buying interest in the Greenback. In the meantime, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East continue to limit the downside potential for now.